Just another day in the office
by Shades of X
Summary: Nine students of U.A.s class 1A are trapped in a world not their own and have to figure out how to get home. Toph hears about some firebenders displaying strange abilities and calls Zuko in to help. Sokka nearly breaks down when he hears about the other Avatar. It only goes downhill from there.
1. Of weird hair and blizzards

English is not my native language, so forgive me if there are any grave mistakes.

Rated T mostly because of Bakugo.

Have fun, drop off a review!

xXx

"Did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

A young boy smiled excitedly. "About the Avatar, of course!"

The other stared at him incredulously. "Yes, I heard of the Avatar. It's hard not to, you know."

"That's not what I meant!" The child's eyes rolled dramatically. "There's word on the street that he was over at Sugiya village a few days ago!"

The teenager shook his head. "Can't be. Even with a flying bison, there's no way he could have been there so soon after that festival over at the Fire Nation palace."

"Oh! Talking about the Fire Nation!" The child's smile grew even wider. "I'm sure that Fire Lord Zuko was with him!"

The older merely sighed. "Now why would the Fire Lord be in an Earth Kingdom village out in the middle of nowhere?"

"What do I know! But," his voice lowered dramatically, "According to Lee, there were two men. He saw them taking down some thugs who were sneaking around at night! Anyway, one of them froze those guys to the ground, but he also held a flame in his hand! There are no other people who can bend two elements, silly!"

This had finally caused the older boy's interest. "That sounds… possible. But are you sure Lee's eyes didn't play a trick on him?"

"No! His brother Sensu was also there and said the guy used two elements!"

A thoughtful nod. "And why are they so sure the other one was the Fire Lord?"

"Because he was shooting lightning around and the two seemed to be really good friends! And I didn't even tell you about the weird hair!"

"Weird hair?"

"Yeah! The Avatar wore a hood, but it fell down. Apparently he has white and red hair! Sounds so strange, doesn't it?"

"White and red hair."

"Yeah! Split down in the middle. Could be an airbender thing, don't you think?"

Silence fell over the two boys. It didn't last long before the younger jumped to his feet. "You are no fun! I'm going to find someone else who will believe me!"

Tired eyes watched the boy run towards an unsuspecting traveler, asking him if he had heard the news about the Avatar.

He run his hands through his hair. _Strange. I know that Fire Lord Zuko was still at that solstice festival not even a week ago. Even if he did hitch a ride with the Avatar, he couldn't have been here in under a week!_ His eyes darted in the direction of their neighbor village. _It would make sense, considering this __rumors__ about that fire bender back then… but what about the Avatar? Why should he be here? And why would no one have seen him? And of course… what was he talking about with the hair __color__?_

He let out a long suffering sigh. _Their eyes must have played a trick on them. The Avatar doesn't even have hair from what I've heard!_

Deciding that the rumors were nothing more than that, he slowly rose to his feet. He had to go out into the woods to hunt. It had become cold outside, with heavy snowfall impairing his vision. But their village was low on supplies and he'd rather hunt today instead of postponing it again. While life had become significantly easier now that the war was over, there was still much to be rebuilt. Many of the village's men had not come back from the war. Some would never.

It had been half a year and the villagers had become accustomed to the thought. It also meant that a lot of the younger children were helping where they could. Children just barely on the verge of adulthood, like himself.

He checked himself over and decided to treat himself a warm drink before heading out again.

Entering the tavern, he nearly bumped into two people enveloped by heavy cloaks to keep out the biting cold. "Sorry", he grunted out.

One of them flashed him a smile underneath his hood. "No worries, man. Should have looked where I was going."

Slightly put off by the man's (teenager's. That guy couldn't be much older than him, right?) articulation, he tried getting a closer look into his face. For a second, he couldn't believe his eyes.

Before he could get a second look, the teenager drawled out a "Take care!" and left with his companion.

They left a completely bewildered teenager behind. Had he just seen that? He could have sworn that the man's hair had been… yellow! And hadn't it become slightly warmer as the second guy had passed him?

He shook his head. Perhaps it would be better if he did not go hunting today. His senses were playing tricks on him.

He settled into a seat and enjoyed a warm drink, listening with half an ear to the chatter around him.

Most of it was about the Avatar and his friend, the Fire Lord.

He payed it no mind.

xXx

Denki Kaminari pulled his cloak tighter once the first gust of wind hit him head on.

His companion slowed his step and finally halted. "You alright over there?"

Denki resisted the urge to growl at him. "I'm freezing!"

"Take my cloak, then."

Some part of Denki's sleep deprived brain found the situation hilarious as he watched the other boy take off the cloak and slowly drape it across the shivering boy's shoulders. "Oh, it's warm. Who's to say chivalry is dead?"

The other snorted, his brain likely creating the same image before his eyes.

"You know, you should have probably kept the hood. Or at least put a scarf or something around your head. You heard those kids talking before, right?"

Heterochromic eyes stared at him for a second before his classmate shook his head. "We're entering a blizzard right now. Nobody in their right mind would be out here at this weather."

"Which is precisely why we are here! No, seriously, is this okay? Are you not cold at all?"

"I'm using my left to keep myself warm."

They slowly trudged through the snow, their acquired goods bumping heavily across their backs. Denki rubbed his hands together in an effort to keep them warm. He wasn't even surprised that he failed.

Part of him cursed their situation to hell and back. Here he was, cold and wet, never mind hungry and tired. And his partner didn't seem in the mood to talk – then again, he never was – which left Denki's imagination to run wild whenever a tree up ahead creaked. Save for those sounds and the rustling of the wind it was ominously silent.

"So", he started, just wanting to get rid of the silence. He didn't know what to talk about, so he shut his mouth. The other merely glanced at him before continuing forward as if he hadn't heard anything,

Denki cursed himself. He should really have asked a third person to come along. Then Todoroki could enjoy his silence alone while Denki would have someone to talk with!

"So", he tried again, "what do you think is an Avatar?"

This time, Todoroki actually slowed down enough so that he was directly besides him. "I'm not sure. It sounded like a title though. Did you notice how everyone talked about The Avatar? As in only one person?"

"Yeah, I heard. So, did we miss something? I mean, we saw there were people here who manipulate elements, so it shouldn't have surprised anyone to see you use your quirk, right? And while electricity seems to be rare, one of those guys did throw lightning at us, too! And the last few times, nobody even bothered to look twice!"

"Not counting that woman trying to exorcise you because of your hair color?"

"Pssht. She was not trying to exorcise me."

Todoroki gave him the blankest look Denki had ever seen. "She hit you on the head with her broom."

"See? Not an exorcism."

"She also tried to drown you in – what did she call it again? - holy oil meant to dispose of violent spirits."

"Dude, I'm pretty sure she only wanted to wash my hair with that stuff."

"She did also call the town's warriors because there was an evil spirit trying to destroy the town."

"Nah, I think… okay, you may be right. Back on topic, what was different?"

Todoroki mulled the thought over in his head. "I'm not sure. I have used both fire and ice before when people saw us. Even though most seemed uncomfortable or even downright hostile when I used my flames. I don't know what I did differently this time."

"I managed to overhear some people talking about the Avatar's companion, which would most likely be me. They were wondering if I was the Fire King or something."

"Fire Lord I believe is the term they used."

"Yeah. Seems to be because there's a guy who can use electricity who's a friend of that Avatar guy." Denki squinted his eyes trying to see the path ahead, but the storm made it nearly impossible. "I hope the others are okay. Nobody frozen to death and all."

Todoroki gave a slight incline of his head. "We've all had survival training. I'm sure they are fine."

"Just saying. It's freezing, you know."

"Yes, I know. I can't even remember the last time I had to put his much energy into regulating my own body temperature."

Denki startled. Todoroki always seemed to possess no real limit as to how much energy he used up. The only time his dual quirk seemed to have a drawback was when his own temperature was getting too high or too low. He bit his lip. In this strange world, Todoroki was the one who could use his quirk the most, simply because it did resemble whichever elemental powers the natives used. He himself could pass, but there had been an incident a while back where someone had seen him use his electricity and asked him about a demonstration of his fire. Which had nearly escalated.

Bakugo too seemed to be accepted easily. Except his hair, which wasn't that much of a surprise anymore. Apparently there were only black and brown haircolors in this world as opposed to their own. He thought back to the strange reactions of people upon seeing his bright yellow hair and snickered. Todoroki threw him a strange look. "You alright over there?"

"Just thought back to that other village. How do you think would they have reacted if it had been Midorya walking down the streets with me instead of good old Bakugo?"

"Less yelling and even more exorcism."

If the sound coming across Denki's lips was less of a snicker and more a giggle, nobody would ever know. Save for Todoroki, who wouldn't even think about telling a soul.

Thinking about his friend sombered his mood instantly. While he and Bakugo could apparently pass as people with fire power as long as nobody watched close enough, most of them couldn't use their quirks at all. Which meant that they really couldn't lose Todoroki. "You sure you don't need your cloak? Don't want to get you sick only because I'm a little cold."

Todoroki gave him the tiniest smile. "Seriously, it's alright. It's only taking a bit more effort than normally. I'm miles away from my limits."

Denki suppressed a relieved sigh. Their situation was bad enough already. "Just let me know if it starts getting worse, right?"

"If you want me to."

With nothing to keep his mind preoccupied, Denki started thinking about the whole Avatar thing again. He knew he wasn't necessarily the brightest of U.A.s students. No, he actually knew he was among the less intelligent. But this screamed trouble. If this Avatar really was a single person and that rumor was going to spread, wouldn't the real Avatar know something was up?

Not that he knew if that was good or bad.

They simply didn't have the needed information. They knew that there were people here that could control elements, there were people that couldn't, and save for some tiniest inventions there wasn't even a hint of any technology. There were apparently some tanks and war balloons though. That thought made Denki shudder in revulsion. There were so many cool things technology could bring to humans, and the only thing this world had were war machines.

"Kaminari?"

He looked up to find Todoroki standing a few meters up ahead, regarding him with a slightly concerned expression.

"Sorry. My mind wandered. How long do you think it will get us to get back to camp?"

"Took us roughly two hours to get here without a blizzard. Not counting the fight, we lost quite a bit time there. I recon about three hours, depending on how much worse the wind gets."

"Aw man. And it's already completely dark! Can't you just make us an ice slide or something?"

"We could try. I hope you can skate. You will have to gain a lot of momentum, else you can't use it to go upwards. Too much of it and you slip."

"Seriously? You always make it look so easy. Let's just try. I think I can figure it out. Besides, it's not as if you can't warm me up if I crash into the snow, isn't it?"

"We'll have to stop every few hundred meters though."

"Huh?" Denki looked at the other completely bewildered. "Why's that?"

"Normally, I skate with my right foot forwards. Allows me to alter the slide faster if something comes up ahead. Also to steady it and keep it even. Plus, I can melt the ice behind me with my left." As if to affirm his claim, Todoroki's left side burst into flames, the red strands of his hair seeming to fade directly into tongues of fire. It seemed to dance around him, the scar above his left eye making it seem like his face was set aflame. "I don't really want a direct trail to our camp. I will have to melt the ice every few hundred meters. We still don't know enough about this world. I don't want to take any risks we can avoid."

"Should not have burned the wig Yaoyorozu made you then."

"It's not as if that was planned."

"Yeah, I know. Just messing with you. So, let's slide!"

xXx

Momo Yaoyorozu shivered as she pulled her hand out from beneath her coat. In her hand lay a fire starter which hadn't existed a few seconds before. She wiped her black hair out of her face for the umpteenth time that day only to have the wind push it back again.

They had initially planned not to keep a fire on after dark, but the storm made them all uncomfortable and cranky. Even Uraraka and Midorya had nearly taken a few heads. It hadn't gotten better since Todoroki and Kaminari were running late. They were running low on food and their shelter was not nearly enough. They had at least found some kind of rock formation that allowed them a respite from the neverending wind.

Putting her frozen fingers back under her coat to press them against her skin Momo shivered again. When she pulled her hand out she held another blanket which she threw over to her bickering friends.

She didn't particularly want to take part in that conversation. It sounded like the same one they had since they first woke in this strange world nearly two weeks ago.

Half of them wanted to hide and wait. Since it was only a part of their class that had been transferred here, it was obvious that help would come sooner or later. They could just stay put and wait for help to come. She heard Iida loudly proclaim that they couldn't just rush into this. They had to be smart and stay as far away from anyone who might notice they weren't ordinary.

The other half wanted to enter any town, offer to work there in exchange for a place to sleep, with all of them scouting the respective area for any signs of how they might get home. If they didn't find anything, the would continue to the next town. Bakugo's angry voice reminded her once again that their situation couldn't get any worse.

Lately, they had all started to agree with Bakugo more and more. They were tired of running around in the forest while a storm raged around them.

They had even more reasons now to get out of the cold, especially since the almost-incident not even an hour ago where a tree directly above them had snapped and went straight down. Bakugo's quick reaction had saved them from being crushed. He had simply put his hands up and let loose an explosion that shattered the tree before it could hit them. They had all managed to get hit by splinters but had avoided serious injuries.

But next time, they might not get so lucky. Bakugo's explosion had been much weaker since he was barely sweating at all. Without the nitroglycerin in his sweat, there simply were no explosions.

Even Iida was only arguing because he knew he should be a voice of reason, not because he wanted to stay outside. Everyone of them knew. It was the only reason the fight didn't escalate. Again.

Finally having enough, Momo rose to her feet and called for the others' attention.

"We have to spend tonight here. Todoroki and Kaminari still aren't back and I'm not that fond of us traveling in a blizzard anyway. If we can, we set out for any town tomorrow. Do you all agree?"

Nods accompanied by relieved and thankful glances answered her.

Iida took a step back from where he tried restarting the fire and let Momo set it alight again. He had tried using sticks, but they were too wet and the wind too strong. Even with the lighter it took a few tries until it kept burning.

Their class president thanked her silently before he turned towards the others. "Even though no one should disturb us here, I would like someone to stay on guard all night." Groans and muttered protests were silenced by Iida's raised hands. "Two of our classmates have not come back yet. It is possible that they were hurt in the storm. If they are not back in three hours, we will start looking for them. Even if they were delayed that would be the longest period of time we can spend waiting."

Yaoyorozu decided to chime in while everyone was still paying attention. "We will have to decide where to go tomorrow. The small villages in this area will not be sufficient. The less people there are, the more attention we get. If the boys got everything, we should take a look at the map and figure it out as soon as we can." Again she was met with a series of nods. "Also, we will have to get even more careful with our quirks. We will have to buy clothes to blend in. I can't create them for us since I am not sure what kinds of clothes we will need. Luckily, none of our classmates who can easily be recognised as superhuman are here with us, so we can blend in more easily."

Bakugo let out a snort at that, clearly remembering the debacle on their third day in this world. "Sure we do. Half'n'half doesn't stand out like a sore thumb at all. And neither does Shitty Hair."

Kirishima sputtered as he tried forming a retort. His hands flew up to his bright red hair. "Oh please, as if you didn't! I get the impression that I would stand out less than you!"

Uraraka rubbed her hands slightly before she spoke up. "So the plan is disguises, right?"

Iida nodded. "Not necessarily for you, you don't look that different from them. But for some of us definitely. And as Yaoyorozu already mentioned, our quirks will have to be under control the whole time. No random explosions" Bakugo didn't even bother looking offended, "No teenagers lifting things that five adults couldn't carry" Both Midorya and Uraraka looked slightly ashamed, "Just… nothing. I know that we have used our quirks rather freely since we moved into the dorms, but we are way out of our comfort zone. Please don't do anything rash. Now. Who wants to take first watch?"

xXx

Toph sat by a window and stared outside. To her unseeing eyes it was the same as if she were staring into the room, but she was feeling drawn to the outside today. So she sat by the window and thought about going on another adventure. Things had calmed down considerably after the end of the war, but tempers were still running high in some instances. This was the reason she was at this meeting after all. There had been rumors from a small Earth Kingdom town somewhere in the north that some strange looking firebenders had caused a ruckus. Nobody had been hurt, but people just liked to complain about the big, bad firebenders. Apparently it had been two teenagers. One of them had reacted badly to some insult or another and had exploded a cart of cabbages. Toph suppressed a yawn and turned her head back to the officials.

"And what exactly is the problem? This is not exactly the kind of story I can waste my time for." Which, frankly, was a lie. She had nothing to do at the moment. She had been thinking about visiting Sparky in the Fire Nation or going up to the South Pole to visit the Water Tribe siblings. The latter idea had been discharged immediately. It wasn't often that the Earth Kingdom had such harsh winters. For a girl who had to walk barefoot else she was blind it was a tiring experience.

She didn't mind snow as long as it was within reasonable amounts. This was far from reasonable.

"Ma'am, we had three fire nation kids bothering citizens in an Earth Kingdom village. They have to be held responsible!"

"Three? I thought it was two."

An older man sitting by the fire shook his head. "The one with the explosions. One who caused quite a stir when he showed of his lightning bending. And one who put out the flames and pulled the other two away before the authorities could arrive."

Now this caught her interest. "Lightning?" She knew it was rare. To have some kid stroll around casually using lightning was… disturbing. She knew Sparky had gotten the hang of it recently but it still wore him out quickly.

"Not in the usual way. He used tiny amounts of lightning, only sparks of it. He held it and entertained a few kids."

"They don't sound bad to me, you know. Except the boom-boom-guy." Damn, that was her inner Sokka speaking. She could nearly her the men frown. "It wasn't. Until the explosion startled him and he lost control."

Toph's heart skipped a beat before she remembered no one got hurt. "What happened?"

"The lightning spread out and knocked a few people right off their feet. They couldn't move for a while, but it didn't kill them. Still, I want words with that kid. But they disappeared."

Toph's thoughts raced a million miles per minute. "Today's your lucky day, then", she said, "for as the teacher of the Avatar I feel it is my purpose to take this matter into my own hands."

"I was hoping you'd say that. But they have disappeared without a trace."

"There's another matter. About their appearances. It will not help you much though, considering your condition." Toph turned to the other man. She nearly couldn't believe her ears. "I am quite able to hold myself in any situation, thank you very much."

"Yet you cannot perceive color. Two of the young men possessed some strange hair colour, the third was wearing a wig, but he had some hairs sticking out. White hair. Which is quite uncommon among younger people." Toph could nearly feel his sneer. "And the other both had some kind of yellow or golden hair which I have never seen before. You wouldn't even recognize them if they were standing right in front of them."

"Then I will have to ask someone to accompany me." Toph made sure her temper stayed in check. It took nearly everything in her to keep her voice steady and her words tame. For once she was thankful for her parents' insistence of her behaving lady-like. Else she would have probably run a third of the men into the ground already.

"This was a few days back? In this weather, they will not have been able to move much. I'll call in a few favors. Leave this to me."

The men courtly excused themselves and Toph let out a shaky breath. How she hated this situation!

She turned to a servant girl standing by the entrance. "Can you write a letter for me?"

The girl gave a twitch. "I could, but wouldn't it be better if you asked -"

Toph didn't let her finish. "I'm writing a letter to my friend. I don't even care if you tell the whole world about what I'm writing. But I have to get into contact with him as soon as possible."

The girl went to the table and prepared a letter. "What should I write, Miss?"

"Write exactly as I say. Not one word different, got it?"

_Hey Sparky, _

_It's been a while. Obviously I'm not writing this myself, but I have something important to tell you. _

_There has been a small ruckus a while back in Yuketsu, a small village at the northern border of the Earth Kingdom. You probably haven't heard about it. I sure as hell didn't._

_Anyway, this ruckus was caused by some firebending children. One didn't do much, don't know why they even bothered telling me about him. They said something about strange haircolor. Also for the other two. I'll tell you more about that later._

_Now the other two are interesting. Remember Sparky Sparky Boom Man? One of the kids had similar skills in blowing things up. I call him the Boom-Boom-Guy, Don't laugh._

_The last could be interesting for both you and Twinkle Toes. He played around with concentrated lightning – must have held it for some minutes – and managed to paralyze some people without actually hurting them. Save for some spasms afterwards. You interested?_

_Truth to be told, I just want to have my personal heater while I sniff around. It sounds quite interesting to me!_

_If you didn't notice, this was no request. You still owe me a life-changing field trip after all!_

_Don't write me back, I can't read it anyway. I'll be in Yuketsu, meet me there._

The girl scrutinized the lines and smiled. "Must be a good friend, huh? Whom do I adress it to?"

Toph allowed a smirk to come. "Fire Lord Zuko."

Judging from the girl's incredulous sputtering, this had not been expected.

Well, what did they expect? She was the world's greatest earthbender after all!

xXx

„Up ahead."

Todoroki gave a small huff in confirmation. Despite his earlier claim Kaminari could easily see the frost covering the right side of his body. Not the frost from the outside. Using his icepowers for such a long period of time while also fighting the ice from the outside had obviously taken it's toll on the reserved boy. Kaminari pretended not to notice the way Todoroki's steps seemed to falter ever so slightly. Most likely it would be alright if he got a good night of sleep.

God, he hoped it would.

It had taken him more time than he cared to admit to get the hang out of the ice slide. Todoroki had done his best to align them in a way that gave them shelter from the storm, but had to stop after an hour of constantly fighting against nature. From then on, their trek had become even harder. Despite their hopes the storm hadn't ceded even the tiniest bit. It had taken them more than the three hours estimation that Todoroki had given. Not by far, yet Kaminari shuddered to even think about how long it would have taken them without the slides.

Kaminari could make out individual people now. He could see most of his classmates sleeping around the fire. Two were sitting up and keeping watch, though they hadn't noticed the two boys yet.

"Who's standing there?" Kaminari wasn't sure he had ever heard Todoroki's voice that strained before.

"Can't you see? You getting old already?"

"My vision's been kinda blurry the last twenty minutes or so."

Kaminari slammed to a halt. Todoroki barely avoided stumbling into him. "Why didn't you say so?"

"Didn't matter. I'll be fine after a couple hours of sleep. We had to get back as fast as we could. You started getting blue around the lips about an hour ago. I didn't bother trying to warm you up, it wouldn't have worked. And if I started a fire in this storm I don't know if I would be able to control it."

Kaminari tried formulating a response, but his brain decided that he had had enough excitement for one day. His legs started buckling underneath him. Only muscle memory stopped him from falling face first into the snow. His mind was foggy and his thoughts slower than a slug. "It's Iida. He's looking really concerned. Looks like Midorya is also awake, he's sitting by a fire. Why do they have a fire? Didn't we decide not to have a fire at night the day we arrived?"

"Who cares. I'm tired."

Kaminari smiled slightly. It had taken them so much longer than expected, but they were finally back. Catching sight of Iida finally noticing them, how his face lightened up immediately, he took the last steps into the camp.

He just barely managed to get a blanket over his body before he was out.


	2. Of villages and fire

Wow. I can't believe how much feedback I've been given on this! I can't thank you guys enough, it means the world to me.

There have been some changes to chapter 1's format. On my previously used website, I normally use two to three free lines, then - - - and again a few free lines when I switch PoV. But this site filters that out as empty lines. So, sorry if it was hard to read. It's been fixed.

Second fix, the apostrophies have been changed to be up in the air all the time. Since I'm using a german keyboard, the first ones are automatically set like a comma.

I actually wrote this chapter the same day as the first. It's funny how in a review from LadySunami mentioned the hair dye. Which has been written for about a week since then. So, there you go!

xXx

"So, this is it then? We're going to this Ba Sing Se?"

"Looks like it. If no one is against it."

"Shouldn't you wake those morons then?" Katsuki Bakugo hinted at the still sleeping boys.

Four Eyes shook his head. "They came back nearly frozen solid. The least we can get them is a few more minutes of sleep."

The storm had finally lessened in the early morning hours. Katsuki had been woken for the last shift just before the wind had stopped. He was not impressed about having to do his watch shift with Mineta. He was just as unimpressed about having to do it at all. Their whole situation had Katsuki redy to blow any second. He ignored the voice in the back of his head telling him he always was.

Half'n'half and Dunce Face were still completely dead to the world. Thy didn't even as much as stir when the group started breaking camp. Only when everything else had been put away did Iida wake them.

Dunce Face still looked a bit groggy and Half'n'half had bags the size of his daddy issues under his eyes.

Shitty Hair boxed against Katsuki's shoulder and ignored the murderous look he got in response. "So we are finally getting out of here, huh?"

"Whatever."

Shitty Hair only grinned. "Man do I look forward to a roof over my head again. Hey, Iida! How long will it take us to reach that Basin Say?"

Four Eyes looked up from the last bag he was packing. "Ba Sing Se. I am not sure, it will be a few days since we are forced to walk."

Katsuki gave a snort as he threw a challenging glance to the dark blue haired class president. "I bet we could be a lot faster."

Four Eyes gave a longsuffering sigh. "I know we could. But we can't just use our quirks as we please while we are here. Please remember that."

Katsuki growled lowly. "Don't tell me what to do!"

Ponytail called Four Eyes away for some last checkup. Shitty Hair watched her go and turned back to Katsuki. "What's that gloomy face for? I mean, we finally get to move. You were the one who wanted to do this more than anyone! So shouldn't you be happy?"

The spiky haired boy stared down at his hands. "It's too damn cold, that's what's up! I couldn't properly use my quirk right now even if I wanted to!"

"Oh." That was Shitty Hair's only response. "Let's stay positive! Ba Sing Se is to the south, right? Should be warmer there!"

"Not enough."

"You could always ask our personal heater!"

"I would rather kill him."

"Geez. You're as nice as always."

Ponytail came to stand in front of them. "Are you two ready?"

Shitty Hair gave his widest grin and a thumbs up. She turned around. "Good then. Let's move!"

xXx

Zuko was torn between smiling at his friend's antics and trying to think about how someone could be able to hold concentrated lightning for even a few seconds without hurting himself. It would have been a useful skill back when he was fighting in the war.

It still felt strange to him, thinking of the war as over. Lots of people weren't happy with the decisions he made once he was crowned Fire Lord.

Zuko himself felt that some of the critcism was justified. He was barely 17 years old and had missed out on many necessary lessons during his three years of banishment. Still, most of the country had accepted him as the new Fire Lord without a problem. The few voices that rose against him were slowly growing weaker as time passed. Yet he always feared. He knew there were things he couldn't see. Voices rising in the darkness where he couldn't hear. He could feel in his very bones the tension surrounding the court.

Toph's letter proved a welcome distraction.

His own ability to use lightning was mediocre at best. A firebender with that kind of control was someone he had to talk to.

He slowly stood from the throne and walked back into his sleeping quarters. It would do him good to forget about formalities and the court's neverending tests.

His uncle had agreed to stay for a while, so he could transfer command to him. The young Fire Lord instinctively stood a little taller when he thought about meeting his friend again.

The scarred teenager had to take the throne, it was as simple as that. While he still knew that his uncle would have been the better choice, he understood the reasons the older man had declined. He even agreed with them. Still, having been on his own with no one to command him for so long, it felt strange being back here.

Of course there was no one who dared telling a Fire Lord what to do. Much less one that was crazy enough to fight an Agni Kai under the light of Sozin's comet. His newfound lightning bending didn't hurt that image either.

Still he missed the friendly banter while setting up camp, he missed the onesided swordfights against Sokka (he swore he could still feel the impact from the boomerang. While that thing had hurt a lot when he first raided the village, that time during training, he didn't have a helmet on. That really hurt.) and even having to play parent for a ragtag bunch of teenagers.

He missed seeing the sky above him when he fell asleep.

Now he was boxed in again, trapped in a golden cage.

He threw the last few items into his traveling bag and exchanged his clothes for something more suited for a trip to the Earth Kingdom. Arriving in a small village with the royal robes would most likely get him killed. He would have to throw in a visit to the Earth King for good measure though.

_It could be worse_, he mused, _could be a visit to the Northern Water Tribe._ They may or may not still hold a grudge against him. They might also just not have overcome their hate for the Fire Nation. No matter the reason, Zuko had quickly decided that he would keep his visits to the Northern Water Tribe to a bare minimum. (Not that he planned on going to the Southern Water Tribe that much either. They might have a slightly better image of the Fire Nation thanks to Katara and Sokka, but he didn't trust that fragile peace. Also, it was just plain freezing. On the other hand, at this time of the year, the Earth Kingdom would be too.)

Checking his bag for a last time, he went to see his uncle.

xXx

Toph had her hand pressed against a stone and felt for the world around her. People avoided going out on the street, so the market was nearly empty. An older townswoman had told her another version of the story about those young firebenders (It didn't matter if they were older than her. She had fought in a war. As far as experience went, she was an adult.) where it seemed like they really didn't do anything. Another told her how the Boom-Boom-Guy had tried killing them all. He had at least threatened to kill anyone who didn't get out of the way.

Toph blew a strand of hair out of her face. It would likely take a few days more for Sparky to arrive. Until then, she would just have to snoop around some more.

xXx

Minoru Mineta snapped his mouth shut before the grumble could escape him.

His feet hurt from the long trek through the snow, he was hungry, it was cold! But no one else complained, so he kept his mouth shut.

It had taken Minoru lots of time to really get his head into the game. He didn't have the deep rooted conviction to be a hero the others all possessed. He wanted to be a hero, sure.

Because it was what everyone wanted to be nowadays, and frankly, Minoru couldn't really see himself doing anything else. He had heard when he was young that a quirk such as his could make him a hero, could make him popular with the girls. He had doubted it most of the time. Minoru himself could barely believe it when he passed the test.

He didn't have the necessary drive when it came to fighting. It wasn't as if he didn't know how to take care of himself in a fight. His mind just shut down.

When he compared himself to people like Midorya and Bakugo, he always felt like a complete wimp. They always jumped headfirst into battle with their fists blazing.

Then there was Todoroki, who didn't ever seem to be bothered by a fight. Minoru had never seen an ounce of fright within the scarred boy, only icy determination. (He had heard that he had been as terrified as the rest of the group when they had witnessed the display of All For One's sheer power, but he was the only one of that group who didn't claim his body had frozen out of sheer terror.) Minoru couldn't even think about competing with him.

His eyes came to rest on Yaoyorozu. For once, there were more important things on his mind than admiring her body. The black haired girl also tended not to trust her own judgement. But when it came down to a fight, she would never run.

The same also went for the brown haired girl next to her. Uraraka might have been a gentle soul, but she could fight with a determination that put most of their classmates to shame.

With Iida, it had always been difficult to tell. He had the drive to become like his brother, the hero he had taken the name _Ingenium_ from. He wanted to become a hero that could save everyone. Most of the time this blew up into his face. He always tried staying realistic, he tried keeping everyone on track, but with forces like Midorya, Bakugo and Todoroki in their group, it barely worked. Those three tended to rush into danger without any regards for the consequences. Minoru let out a sigh. It was no wonder the chasm between them and the rest of the group grew bigger every day.

While they might spend less time being in the spotlight, Kirishima and Kaminari still were the kind of heroes everyone wanted to become. They were strong and fierce. The redhead with his hardening quirk that made him nearly indestructible and the yellow haired teenager with his electricity quirk might have been at the bottom of their class grade wise, but they had everything needed to become heroes.

Mineta himself had the grades. He had the abilities. He simply lacked the drive. He wasn't cut out for hero work, or for anything else. He became a hero because it was the only way he could see himself have a future.

It wasn't as if he didn't try being a real hero. Every time he really tried, every time he came close to that invisible _something_, his mind threatened to shut down on him. It was so much easier concentrating on everything else. He knew that he would most likely fail. But he couldn't get himself together enough to really make a difference. If it didn't work out, he could start something else. Something else where he would also lack the drive…

So Minoru focused on enjoying small things in life. He knew he went to far some… all the time. The more afraid of himself, of his failure he became, the more his personality turned into something everyone hated. Himself included. But it was to hard. It was too hard to keep going. It was too hard to stop.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Kaminari coming to a halt a few meters ahead. "Please tell me we can rest a bit. We've been walking for hours!"

Bakugo gave him a disdained look. "How do you want to become a hero when you can't even handle a little hike, Dunce Face?"

Kaminari's face darkened into a scowl. "If you didn't notice, I took a hike through a damn blizzard yesterday! After I already took a two hour hike to even get to that town _and_ a fight against twenty crazed muggers! I can't exactly help it if I'm completely wasted, okay?"

Iida held out his hands to calm him down. "It's alright. We can take a break. I'm sure we all need it." Obviously noticing Bakugo's fists, he added "Giving ourselves some rest will allow us to continue faster afterwards. We will rest for half an hour before we continue on. We'll take a longer break once we get into the plain up ahead."

Uraraka's eyes blew wide. "But that's so far away!"

"I know. But I don't want to spend another night in these mountains. Besides, from there on it will take us two days to reach that city. There's another village on our chosen way where we can try getting a look on how to dress and act. This time, I'd prefer us not to blow anything up."

The way they settled down was completely routine by now. Bakugo and Kirishima went out to collect some wood while the others unpacked everything they'd need in this particular time. This time, it wasn't much. Minoru handed Todoroki a pot which he promptly filled with ice only to melt it down and cook the water up in an instant. By then, Bakugo had exploded their gathered wood into a fire that would keep the water warm. They could also have warmed it naturally, but it took so incredibly long. (Minoru did _not_ think about what he was actually drinking. He was not quite sure where Todoroki created his ice from. If it was like Bakugo's quirk, then… _eeks_. He terminated that thought as quick as it came.) Yaoyorozu had taken some of their purchased tea out and prepared it for them to drink. She had shown a lot of knowledge on that subject, claiming she did often enjoy a cup of tea to calm herself. (He was pretty sure it was a spoiled rich kid thing.) Nobody complained about it, the warm drink worked wonders on their tired muscles and… tired everything.

They had hiked for most of the day now, the sun was getting close to the horizon again. The forest was still around them, but it had cleared enough to let them see how much they had before them. A few kilometres after the forest would end they would also leave the mountains behind. From then on, it would be a trip across fields buried in snow that went way over Minoru's head. Actually Iida might be the only one who could be tall enough for this.

Todoroki subtly used his ice powers to keep them all from sinking into the snow too much, but it was still a tiring process. It wasn't made better by knowing at least Iida, Bakugo and Todoroki could probably close the distance between themselves and the city within a few hours.

Minoru finally halted. "Why don't the fastest of us go ahead and scout?"

The others turned to him with questioning eyes. "I mean, the three of you could at least make it to the village and look for the right kind of clothes we need, right? It would make us faster."

Kaminari leaned into him. "Dude, you're just sending away the two of us who can create flames. Gonna be some cold nights."

"You'll manage", Bakugo spat out. "So you want me to run ahead, run back and then walk the whole way again?"

"It is possible", said Yaoyorozu. "But I'd say only two of you go. Iida and Todoroki probably?"

Todoroki gave a tiny huff, a cloud of frost coming over his lips. "I get the impression you don't want me with the group anymore."

"Just because you are the most logical choice for a scout. I will have some trouble running over this much snow, but we should still be able to reach the village in… two hours, I guess." Iida ran a hand through his hair. "So we only look for more information on how to blend in. It would perhaps be for the best if we stayed there and try to make a bit of money, right? Also, when we are not busy having to run because of someone making us stand out, we can try finding out more about the powers in this world."

"That whole Avatar talk creeps me out", Midorya murmured. "It could be anyone. It could be someone like All For One for all we know!"

At this, he visibly flinched. For a second, it looked like he was either going to say something or dissolve into one of his infamous mumbling fits. A second later, his expression became stricken and closed of. He kept his mouth shut.

Kaminari shook his head. "They were way to excited about the possibility about him being there. It kinda sounded like he could be some spiritual leader, or perhaps a hero like All Might!"

At that, they all calmed slightly. "We don't know anything about it for sure", Iida reminded them. "Then it is decided. Todoroki and I will scout ahead and gather information. Are you sure you will be alright?"

Uraraka gave a fist pump. "Don't you worry about us, Iida! We'll manage!"

Yaoyorozu moved her clothes aside so she could touch her skin. "I'll get you the rudimentary disguises you'll need. Just out of curiosity, what happened to the wig I gave you?"

Todoroki didn't look bothered in the least. „Got burned."

The girl stopped her creation process. "I think I remember the formula for hair dye. Might reek even worse than the original ones. But you don't burn your own hair and I'm tired of having to make new ones every few days."

She took some seconds to concentrate before producing a few tubes of hair gel. Todoroki carefully took one and opened it. For the first time since the beginning of the school year Minoru could see Todoroki's nonchalant expression crumbling away into one of pure disgust.

That was when the smell hit him.

Hands were instantly slammed above noses. Todoroki actually froze his own nose over.

Kirishima gave a barking laugh. "What the heck is this stuff made of?"

Yaoyorozu gave him a blank look. "If I tell you now, he wouldn't ever use it."

"Not very reassuring. How does this even work?" Todoroki had apparently accepted his fate and removed the ice.

"I'd show you", Kirishima grinned, "but ten horses wouldn't get me any closer to that stuff. Geez."

"Appreciate it", the dual quirk user shot back.

Iida gave Yaoyorozu a horrified expression. "Please just give me a wig. I won't lose it, I promise."

She gave a giggle and produced one for him. "Now as for you..."

xXx

When they entered the town, Tenya Iida could still see Todoroki trying to get the smell out of his nose. It had become nearly unnoticeable, but the memory of the stink alone was enough to make Iida gag.

It was strange seeing Todoroki with anything but his extraordinary dual hair colours. He seemed… plain, for the lack of a better word. What concerned Tenya was how much it made his scar stand out.

Normally, the crimson bangs hid the angry red scar around Todoroki's left eye. Tenya still didn't know the story about the scar, but it was obvious his friend must have gained it when he was still fairly young.

If he didn't scar himself in a training accident, maybe it had been an incident with his family? He knew that Todoroki's oldest and long deceased brother also had possessed flame powers. Nevermind about his father Endeavor. He could completely melt a whole building after all with just an ounce of his strength.

It would fit the vow Todoroki had made at the sports festival, a claim that he would never use his left side in battle. Then again, it had only been those flames that saved Tenya from being run through by a sword multiple times.

It made him worry. A scar like this was bound to be noticed, and-

"You're staring."

Tenya startled and tore his eyes away from his friend's face. "Sorry. Just worrying."

Todoroki raised his hand to the scar, brushing above its edges. "There are a lot of people with burn scars out there", he murmured. "Most of them not as obvious, but I don't think I'll stand out much."

"I'm sorry. I'm just worrying about you."

"You're worrying about everything."

Tenya wished he could protest. "So where do we go? I see a tavern back there, maybe we can help out as waiters or something."

To those who didn't know Todoroki, he would have seemed completely at ease. But to Tenya, the underlying tension couldn't be more obvious. "Would you rather go somewhere else?"

"I'm not fond of that many people around me even when they're sober."

"I understand. Perhaps I can work in the tavern while you ask around for something else?"

"It's better than nothing. Let's just try there."

Tenya threw a last glance at his own calves. The simple trousers Yaoyorozu had made him (They had come here in their hero costumes after all) hid his engines rather well, but to someone who looked close enough it would be obvious that he was hiding something. He sighed. "Perhaps you and Bakugo would have been a better choice for this."

Todoroki huffed out a fiery breath. "I don't think so. For one, he would definitely yell at me the whole tour long. He's still rather mad at me."

"He's mad at everyone."

"I know. It's a shame though. When we had the training for the second provisionary license exam, I thought we had gotten closer. Then again, I thought that back at I-Island too."

"You were quite the team back there. Also at the summer training camp."

"It felt like we were."

Tenya pushed the door to the tavern open. Like the rest of the village, it was old and dusty. The smell of alcohol slammed into him like a wall.

People around them were laughing and screaming, a brawl had broken out in one of the corners. Iida could see some man flirting with a woman who couldn't have been half as old as he was.

Some people had turned their heads and regarded the two teenagers with malice.

"Those people on the right don't seem happy to see us", he murmured into Todoroki's ear.

"I can see that." Todoroki's expression didn't change from bored, but his eyes were cold and calculating as he took in their surroundings.

A heavy hand landed on Tenya's shoulder. "Ain't ya a bit young ta be in here this late, lad?", a burly man drawled.

He gulped down his nervosity. "We're on our route to Ba Sing Se. We don't have money and are looking for a place to sleep."

The man looked him up and down. Looked over at Todoroki and frowned. "You, lad. You a mixed blood?"

Todoroki startled somewhat. "What if I am?"

The man studied him for a second. "Skin's obviously Fire Nation, you ta pale ta be anything else. But I've never seen eyes like yous before."

Tenya's heart skipped a beat. The man drew even closer to his friend. "Have never seen some Ashmaker with blue eyes. And not with that strange grayish brown either."

"Ashmaker?", Todoroki asked incredulously.

The man growled. "You look like an Ashmaker to me. Why don't you get outta here right now?"

Todoroki caught the man's stare. "Again. What if I am not an _Ashmaker_?"

A voice chimed in from the sides. "If you scare away my customers again, you should leave now, old man!"

The man gave another low, guttural growl before he turned and left the tavern without a word.

The voice's owner was even bigger than the other but quite a bit younger. He had dark brown hair and sharp green eyes. "He wasn't giving you two any trouble, wasn't you?"

Tenya didn't know how to respond, so he settled for "He called my friend an Ashmaker."

The man sighed. "Sorry. He's fought in this war for a long time. He doesn't react well to those with fire in their blood. What can I get the two of you?"

_Fire in their blood? I see. So there are certain appearances tied to the elements they manipulate. Todoroki obviously seems like a mixture of fire and something else to them. I should ask him not to use his ice anymore while we are here. _„We need a place to stay for a few days in exchange for work."

The man held his glance for a moment. "This little tavern belongs to me. I also have a stable where those who rest here can keep their animals. If you want to, one of you can help me up here and help me while the other helps my brother down with the animals. Sounds like a deal?"

Tenya glanced over at Todoroki for a moment. "Sounds great."

"Wonderful. Come with me then." He led them into a room behind the counter. "So, who's gonna do what?"

Tenya stepped forwards. "I'd like to help you out in the tavern. I've had some experience with running similar institutions. My friend here is a bit shy, but he is great with animals." It was a bit of a stretch, but most animals tended to snuggle into Todoroki's left side the second he came into reach.

The man gave him an encouraging smile. "Wonderful. So, what are your names?"

"I'm Tenya Iida and this is Shoto Todoroki."

"Alright then. I'm Tsuyoshi. Tenya, you come with me. Shoto, if you go out through the back door, you'll see a stable to the left. My brother Lung is working there, tell him I sent you down to help out. You'll work as long as I need you, can be late into the night. In that case, you can sleep a bit longer. The first room to the right up on the second floor is free, you'll have to bunk together. It's actually a room for… partners, so you'll have to make do with one bed. Sorry."

Todoroki shrugged. "We've had so many sleepovers or trainings where we all slept at the same spot, this is nothing different."

Tenya tried to keep his face from going bright red. _It is!_

xXx

Shoto Todoroki unconsciously raised his body temperature the second he went out into the street. _Ashmaker? War? Something definitely happened here. The men here mostly have earthpowers, I've seen someone move the snow outside though. Maybe they band together depending on which elements they can control? So it could have been a settlement of fire users that thought against these men in a war. That means I have to be careful. _His eyes scanned the streets. It was pitch black outside, his left eye couldn't make any details out. His right thankfully was not adapted to the brightness of flames, so he could see something at least. _I obviously could try to pass as a water citizen, and keep my flames to myself. But that will fail the moment someone wants to see real water! Nevermind the skin color._

He knocked on the door of the stable and entered it. A soft light greeted him. He could see a man sitting by the light, reading. Then something else caught his eyes and he did a doubletake.

_What in the world is that?_ He could see an animal that looked like… a mixture between an ostrich and o horse.

"What's the matter, boy, never seen an ostrich horse before?"

He looked over to the young man. "Not in real life at least."

"They're beautiful, aren't they. Not sure who this one belongs to actually. We found it a few days back and have been nursing it back to health ever since. It was trapped in a bush and nearly froze to death."

Shoto slowly stepped towards the animal. "So what's his name?" _Focus on that. Not on the fact that you are standing in front of an ostrich horse in a different world than your own. Everything is perfectly normal here. Heh._

"Her. Dunno, I would normally name her, but she doesn't like me very much, so she's only _Beast_ to me for now. Once she opens up I'll name her. You might not want to do that." Shoto quickly pulled his hand back from where he had tried petting the creature's head. "Something the matter?"

"Nah. She bites. You want to keep your fingers, right?"

"She doesn't look hostile to me."

"She doesn't now. Just wait until you underestimate her. Then she'll rip your arm off." Uncrossing his arms, the man beckoned him closer. „What are you here for?"

"Your brother sent me here to help. My friend struck a deal with him."

Lung looked skeptical. "And what does he give you back? If you didn't notice, this town is on the verge of dying. We don't have money to pay you."

"A place to rest. We'll meet here with some friends before continuing to Ba Sing Se."

"In this weather?" Thick eyebrows rose. "You sure this is a good idea?"

"We have to. It's complicated." _Please, leave it at that. I can't explain and I have absolutely no clue how to explain._

The man just shrugged. "If you say so."

Shoto hid a sigh of relief.

"You know my name, what's yours?"

Remembering how confused Tsuyoshi had looked about the usage of their last names, he decided to give the man only his given name. Perhaps it was customary here. "I'm Shoto."

"Well then, Shoto, let me introduce you to the fine art of animal care. Be careful of the commodo rhinos, they'll bite your head clean off." His glance fell at the fire place. "Could you take some wood from there" he gestured to the side of the room "and raise the fire a bit? It's getting chilly in here."

Definitely not thinking about commode rhinos, Shoto carefully gathered the small sticks. He knew from countless survival lessons as well as from painful experience that those wouldn't burn long. Getting high quality wood in this weather was difficult, so they'd have to make due. Arranging the sticks, he started a fire in his left palm and willed it to burn the sticks slowly but more brightly.

He could feel the stare in his back. "What? Are you also not fond of us Ashmakers?" It was risky, but this response could hopefully teach him something.

Lung didn't answer right away. He came to sit next to Shoto and watched the flames dance across the sticks. "This area was relatively well protected from the war. Because of my injuries as a child, I didn't have to fight in it, but I still heard the stories. I heard about those burning to death. I lost a brother to the Fire Nation soldiers trying to invade Ba Sing Se in the Drill Attack." The emerald eyes studied Shoto with some kind of curiosity. It made shivers run down his spine.

"You know, I'm a non-bender. I have only my own hands working for me. Seeing someone doing such a small thing as raising a fire to keep us warm, it's strange. The war taught us all that firebending is only suited for destruction. You make it seem warm and friendly."

Shoto didn't know how to answer at first. "I thought so too when I was younger. Now I use it mostly for small things. Heating up a tea pot, or a bath. Making a fire to keep everyone warm." That was of course a gross understatement, but if this world really had just come out of a war against fire users, it was for the best if he didn't let them know about the sheer power his flames possessed. Besides, he _did_ use his powers for those. It just wasn't everything.

xXx

"You have to be careful in that area."

Zuko looked up to find his uncle standing in his door, ready for a final goodbye. „Why's that?"

The Dragon of the West took a seat and regarded his nephew with serious eyes. „Some of the White Lotus members claim that this region still holds quite a grudge against the Fire Nation. It would perhaps be for the best if you travel under another name until you meet up with young Toph."

"I can take care of myself, uncle. But I'll walk these streets as Lee again."

"I'm glad to hear that. Please do not take this too lightly. In any other region, a few kids stirring up a festival would never have anyone even thinking about calling the Avatar's earthbending master!"

"I know. But I'm glad they did, it seems as if those kids have discovered some rather unusual firebending techniques."

Iroh held Zuko's gaze for a few seconds. "Just be careful. And greet out world's greatest earhtbender for me! How I wish for a relaxing cup of tea in the company of someone like her again. You should invite her over after this."

xXx

Tenya was the first to come into their assigned room. He merely threw his clothes across a stool and got ready to sleep. It was even more comfortable than he could have imagined.

After splitting from the group, their trek hadn't become easier. It had taken Tenya some time before he grew used to running across the snow. Now that they didn't try to stay hidden anymore, they could move a lot faster. Todoroki had simply used his ice slide to move forward, using small gusts of flame to keep up with Tenya's speed now and then. They hadn't run on full power. Iida could hold his maximum speed for about ten minutes, but after that he'd be unable to use his engines for a while. And it would also be impossible for Todoroki to keep up then.

Tenya reckoned they had moved with a speed around 80 kilometers per hour at their fastest point. Most of the time, they stayed around 50. He could feel the draft slamming into him the whole time. He only hoped they didn't catch a cold there.

It had been tiring for both of them. In addition, he had worked until 3 o'clock in the morning. There was still no sign of Todoroki, which made Tenya worry again. But then, Todoroki was arguably the strongest in class 1A. There weren't many things that could keep him down. Deciding his friend was probably safe, Tenya put on the undergarments Yaoyorozu had been nice enough to create and laid down. Sleep claimed him before his head even hit the pillow.

xXx

Izuku Midorya rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Even using his powers, he was slowly getting to the limits of how much he could handle. He knew it was the same for his classmates. While they all tried to stay positive, their nerves were finally laying completely blank.

Nobody talked as they broke camp. They ate in silence, started walking without as much as a single word spoken between them.

Ochako had made all their luggage (if one could even call it that) float again, so there was no real weight to carry. Still, even the thought of carrying anything made Izuku's muscles hurt.

The silence hang over them heavily. Part of Izuku was temped to start singing some marching song just to pass the time, but he had a feeling this would caused death or at least serious injuries by Kacchan's explosions.

He wondered how his mother and their other classmates were doing. When they had been drawn into the portal, Ojiro and Tokoyami had tried getting close enough to help, but they hadn't been fast enough. Izuku could only hope that his friends were really looking for them. It meant that by extension, All Might and Eraserhead had to be searching too. Perhaps even Endeavor, which could speed things up even more.

He remembered people's reactions after Kacchan's kidnapping. How fast everyone had turned away from the superhuman society, how the whole world grew darker. It had only gotten better after All Might had beaten All For One and Kacchan had been saved.

Still, having an entire hero class disappear like this was bound to get lots of negative reactions. It would be possible to chalk it up as roughly half ot the class participating at some camp or whatever, but then the heroes couldn't ask the public for help in finding the missing students. Not that it would do them much good.

Then there was the ever present elephant in the room. They were stranded in this world not their own. With no clue as to how exactly they had gotten here and more importantly, no clue how to get back. Then there were this world's people, who clearly possessed some elemental powers with different sub-styles. Yet they still had looked skeptical when the group had finally gotten into contact with that village after watching them for a few days. Something was nagging at the back of his mind, telling him there was something really important he was missing.

And never forget about his own problems. Namely, One For All. Rather, the way his quirk had suddenly decided to loan him powers belonging to its previous users. What unsettled him was that All Might hadn't known anything about it either. He had only been able to use that other power when he was in mortal danger. It was rough and untamed. Here, there was no one who could help him if he lost control. Kacchan knew about it, but he wouldn't be able to help.

God, how he longed for All Might's presence.

Which in hindsight might have been really bad, since there was this whole _weird hair color_ thing going on, which he still had to figure out. Was it only in this area of the world? Were the people here so secluded from one another that they hadn't ever seen someone with different hair color before? Not even a normal blonde?

Were there perhaps even people who had powers more similar to theirs? Perhaps these elemental powers were regional? No, that couldn't be. He had seen people with all three commonly used elemental powers. (Why there were none who used wind, a part of him wondered.)

Their skin tones had ranged between some rather dark colors to some who seemed ghostly white. Age, skin or hair color didn't seem to have anything to do with wether or not those people were able to use the elements or not.

They hadn't been able to see from afar how these powers worked, never mind knowing how they were called or how many people possessed these powers. That had been the reason they entered that small village way back. It felt like ages ago. But that didn't go as planned...

Because of the hair color. A scowl fixed itself on Izuku's face. How he hoped his friends would finally get the information they needed to be able to move freely again! But even if they got that information, there would still be the problem with-

"Dammit, Deku! Stop that darn muttering right now!" Kacchan's fists threw sparks as he screamed.

Izuku raised his hands. "Sorry, I'm sorry!"

Ochako let out a small laugh. "Feels almost like we're home again, doesn't it?"

This finally broke the spell hanging above them. And if Kacchan exploded a tree out of their way with a bit more violence than what was necessary, no one commented on it.

xXx

Tenya awoke well rested and warm. He kept his eyes closed and enjoyed the feeling. Unconsciously he snuggled even deeper into the warmth to his right. His mind was still trying to get back on track, but for the moment, he just wanted to savour the warmth. A happy sigh escaped him.

"Iida?"

Ignoring the voice, he squiggled himself even closer to the source of the warmth.

"Not that I'm not glad you are happy, but I kinda have to stand up now."

Hearing his classmates voice gave his brain the necessary start. That's when the words registered and his eyes slammed open.

Todoroki regarded his class representative with the tiniest hint of a smirk on his mouth. His face was way to close. Tenya pulled hisarms back as fast as humanly possible and brought distance between them. Too much distance. He had not thought about the bed's edge and tumbled down on the floor.

Todoroki regarded him with that strange expression before he gracefully stood up, uttered a quick "Much obliged" and scurried out of the door.

Tenya laid on the ground, his blood rushing into his face. _If I don't move at all, I can pretend I didn't just cuddle my friend his sleep, right?_

He continued laying there until the door opened again and a slightly concerned Todoroki stood above him. "You okay down there? Did you break something?"

Tenya hid his face behind his hands and shook his head. "Just kill me now."

When he finally trusted himself to look up, Todoroki was still looking concerned and a bit amused.

"Would be a shame. I haven't been cuddled like this since I was five."

Tenya broke down right then and there. Amongst the incredulous sputtering he managed to shout out "You're pure evil!" before calming down. He flopped down on the floor again.

Todoroki was changing already. "I can smell food. We should also ask around if there's someone else we can work for in exchange for some money now that we have the room. The others should arrive tomorrow afternoon, we can continue on to Ba Sing Se then and can hopefully make it to the city shortly after nightfall."

_Just go away please._

"Iida?"

_I'm dead._

"Do you plan on standing up anytime today…?"

_Never._

"I'll just go and grab something to eat then."

Hm. A dilemma. Facing his humiliation or getting something to eat…?

Slowly Tenya rose to his feet. He went over to the bathroom and washed himself quickly before dressing himself and joining his friend before going downstairs.

"Oh, Iida?" _Don't look, don't look… I have a bad feeling about this…_ He risked a glance at his friend's completely serious face.

"You don't have to worry, I won't tell the others about your cuddle tendencies."

Tenya screamed.


	3. Of ostrich-horses and snowfields

Hey! Sorry it took me so long. On the bright side, I finally got my exam results and I can proudly announce that I have passed! More time for writing!

... if my ADHD doesn't get the best of me.

But whoo boy, this chapter didn't want to be written. I've changed and rewritten it a hundred times and I'm still not happy with how the first few parts turned out. Let's hope the next one's more cooperative, shall we?

xXx

The following morning saw a group of displaced teenagers breaking camp yet again. Their moods had definitely improved knowing that they only had to survive one other night out in the wilderness before they could rejoin their comrades. From then on, another day's march until they reached the city.

For the umpteenth time it occured to Momo Yaoyorozu that their class really had the worst luck. Evidence: They had barely started their first school year when they had been attacked during their training. The UA training grounds were definitely amongst the most secure location in all existence, being attacked there, completely caught off guard... it had been a harrowing experience.

Evidence two. The hero killer Stain. What were the odds of not one, but three of her classmates stumbling across a serial killer who made it his sworn duty to kill all heroes? Nevermind that stinking cover story. Momo didn't know what had really happened, but she could imagine just fine. It still sent a shiver down her spine thinking about how close her friends had come to death that day. Iida had lost lots of blood and his arm had never quite healed. Midorya, while being the most incapacitated by his injuries, had taken the longest to heal. And Todoroki, while being the least hurt with "only" two throwing knives stuck in his arm, had been only centimeters from being beheaded.

Evidence three. The kidnapping of Bakugo, yet again in a secure location. Half of the two hero classes being severly injured in the process. Momo still couldn't believe she had ignored all common sense and had helped saving him despite their teacher's warnings. Against al odds, it had gone rather well. Still, it had been close. Too close.

There were lots of other instances where they had come face to face with danger way out of their league. Yet they always managed to come out stronger. A gnawing feeling told her that this time could be the last. This time, it could be over, no happy end, no miraculous rescue, no cheats or second chances, no lucky hits.

She forced her thoughts still. _Stay rational, Momo_, she chastised herself. _That's only the stress speeking. It'll get better._

Still, what she wouldn't give right now to know her friends were all safe. She didn't like splitting the group up one bit.

At least Kaminari had recovered from his extra trek. He and Kirishima spent their time annoying their classmates with their lighthartened banter and their frienldy jabs at Bakugo. ("Shut up! I'll kill you both!") It worked wonders for their overall moral. Uraraka shared some funny stories of her childhood with the group, Midorya was talking about something great the hero All Might had done years ago in incredible detail and Mineta was whining about how he could be home and hanging out with lots of girls right now. Momo took a bit of a double take when she realised that he was exaggerating his behaviour more than usual, provoking reactions from his classmates and keeping them talking. She made a mental note to thank him later. _If I knew that all we had to do to get that perv to act civily was throwing him into a snow covered waistland, I would have done so ages ago!_

They didn't notice the passage of time as much now. It had passed midday when they took their first break. Sure, they were still miserable, frozen head to toe and overly aggrevated, but it had definitely become better. The clouds had passed and left them staring wide eyed at the plain fields encompassed by what must have been million tons of snow. It had an almost eternal and surreal feeling to it. Of course Momo had been outside during winter often, but she had never witnessed this kind of calmness before.

_They don't have much machinery here_, she reminded herself. _So we can safely assume that most of them don't travel as much. They are probably staying in their villages during this time of the year. The only people out in this weather would be merchants._ A frown took over her face. _And the mercenaries. No matter how calm everything here looks, these people are dangerous. And they are still unsure and wary of something. Perhaps we missed a bigger conflict-_

Her feet came to an abrupt halt.

xXx

_I've let myself become spoiled, _Zuko thought at himself. _The thought of travelling to the northern Earth Kingdom sounds much more fun if it's on the back of a flying bison._

Not that he particularily enjoyed all of Appa's little flight tricks nor the constant chatter and banter between Katara and Sokka. Just as much as he didn't enjoy Toph using him as a punching bag and Aang jumping around like a madman whenever they touched the ground again... _Guess I miss the guys more than I thought. Look at that._

Still, his uncle had expressed his worry that he might lose those firebenders if he didn't hurry. _And I can't take a commodo rhino out into that much snow anyway._ He had been warned before that the weather near the mountains was harsh and could be lethal if he wasn't careful enough. A snort escaped him. He'd infiltrated the Northern Water Tribe's sanctum by diving under the ice. A little cold around the mountains wasn't going to beat him. _Still, I should value Uncle's advice. I might not like it, but taking a war balloon is the only way to go._

He would have a problem returning home afterwards. His decision to travel unrecognised hadn't changed, so he'd asked two trusted guards to accompany him and make sure the balloon was returned to the Fire Nation palace. His mouth twitched slightly as he remembered the young soldiers' confused expressions when he told them he'd continue on foot.

During his father's reign the Fire Lord had become an unreachable figure far ahead. Someone who commanded his people to die for him yet barely bothered to show his face to his troops, to his people. If the previous Fire Lords or in general members of the royal family had been travelling, it was always with the most possible luxus. There were guards, there were fanfares. A Fire Lord travelling alone and on foot during winter in the Earth Kingdom? It was absolutely unheard of. _I hope they don't gossip too much about it. It wouldn't do me any good if people were to start looking for me._

Checking one last time if his weapons were secured against his body he entered the secluded area outside of the capital city. No one would ever believe something important to be here. Which was precisely why Zuko had chosen this as the location for some of the remaining war balloons.

Three balloons in total stood in the narrow clearing. One of them was the airship they had stolen from Azula after their escape from the Boiling Rock. One was from the first batch of war balloons to be created, small and slow but with space for roughly ten people.

The third was Zuko's favorite. It was a balloon built to be faster than the others and nearly invisible. Most of the war balloons had been painted in vibrant red. This one was created with stealth in mind. Exactly what he would need.

_The wind's with us_, Zuko realised. _We should be able to reach the city within a day or two at most._

He greeted the guards and instructed them to prepare for lift-off. Sensing a stare searing into his back he threw a glance back in the direction of the palace. His uncle stood at the edge of the clearing with a bright smile on his face and lifted a hand as a farewell.

The smile didn't reach his eyes.

xXx

Izuku sensed a hand on his shoulder and looked over at Yaoyorozu. She looked slightly disturbed. Immediately worrying, the hero in training let himself fall back a bit so they could talk without beeing overheard. _Not looking at you, Kacchan._ His childhood friend had the annoying habbit of listening in, but he was completely preoccupied with his semi-friends.

"What's up?", he asked lowly.

Yaoyorozu chose her words carefully. "You remember how we talked about this worlds powers, right? I wanted to know if there's something strange you noticed. You do enjoy to analyse things after all."

Izuku scratched the back of his head, his mind already going a hundred miles a second as he tried fitting the pieces together. "For one thing, there seem to be no people who can use air. We've seen people work with all the classical elements, which doesn't make that much scientific sense for our world, but could be explained away reasonably enough. There seems to be a greater number of people who can move earth than the other elements, perhaps because we are so close to the mountains? Maybe their elements make them more comfortable close to their _source_. I'd recon there will be a greater variety of elemental users in the city and-" his eyes suddenly widened. Yaoaorozu regarded him calmly. "Gimme a minute", he mumbled. She gave a sharp nod and refocused on the way. After a few seconds she spoke up.

"There is this feeling in the air, this anxiety, as if people were unsure of the world. Perhaps some political unrest? I guess it could be local. And it seems as if peopledon't really like mingling with people using other elements-"

"Element", Izuku interrupted, his mind finally making the obvious connection, "Singular. Oh god, we've been so blind."

Yaoyorozu glanced over at him. "You mean..." her voice trailed off for a second. "Oh my, you're right. We've seen these people using three elements in total, but only one per person."

Izuku nodded, screaming at himself in his head for not seeing it sooner. "If they see Todoroki using both sides, they'll know something's not right! I mean, it could pass as a genetic mutation, right? There have to be people who have multiple DNA strings containing this power. There have to be some hybrids or something, we just haven't seen them. Or perhaps some elements are recessive while others are more commonly passed on? This could be the reason there are so many earth users here." His head started to hurt from trying to wrap his head around this. _No, not quite right, think about what Momo said._ "Perhaps it's something else? This tension you noticed, perhaps that's the reason!" _Here I go rambling off again. But I know I'm onto something!_ "Maybe these powers are mostly local. Like skin colors! Maybe the reason we haven't seen anyone using air is because we are in the wrong part of the world! Maybe these elemental powers are only on this continent, the others could have completely different powers, or perhaps they aren't even common in other areas and we crashed into the only part of this world were anyone possesses supernatural powers!" _Keep going_, he told himself_, you're nearly there. So close._ "So, perhaps this is not so much a political unrest as a territorial conflict! If these people have different elements at their disposal..." He let out a shaky breath.

Yaoyorozu jumped in. "It would only be natural that there would be some conflicts, rivalries between single people and suppremacist ideologies between the different groups. At that first village, they lost it completely after they thought Kaminari was a fire user. Perhaps they had some differences in the past."

Izuku nodded hastily. The rational part of him tried reminding him that he only had a vague feeling, that he had nozhingto build his theory upon. Still, something just felt right. If there was one thing he had learnt in the last months it was to trust his instincts. "And all those ruins. Remember? Or the burnt down fields back... somewhere there." He gestured in the direction they had come from. "Perhaps it is even worse than a conflict about a small part of land. I fear we've gotten ourselves mixed up in something way bigger."

"A war." Yaoyorozu looked straight ahead, her eyes hard. "If we take into account the natives' fear of fire, it would only be plausible that they were the aggressors."

"Still", the green haired boy mumbled, "something's not right about that. If they really were fighting an all out war, they would probably not have let us escape. No. I'm pretty sure we're looking at a world that has been at war. It has to be over. And recently at that."

"Anything you two want to share with the group?" Izuku jumped and whirled around to face Uraraka. His heart missed a beat or two upon seeing her directly behind them. "Ur- Uraraka! Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry." The brown haired girl rubbed the back of her neck. "It's just that I tried to listen to you two, but honestly, I couldn't keep up with what you were saying."

Their second class representative sighed. "We're not sure if it's right. Not completely." She shook her head. "The earth users fought a war against the fire users. That much I am sure of. And we have nearly only people with fire themed quirks here."

Bakugo gave a scoff. "And if? You scared, Ponytail?"

Yaoyorozu didn't rise to the bait. "Concerned. If we are right, if these people fought a war against fire users, then there's a chance they'll talk about us. I don't want to attract any more attention than we have to."

Sensing the escalation coming Izuku swiftly brought himself into the discussion again. "How about we take another short break and then hurry to that village? I'm sure Iida and Todoroki will have some new information for us."

xXx

"Tsuyoshi?"

The man startled and jumped up, causing him to hit his head on the shelf above him. "What the- Who-" He whirled towards the voice and calmed when he saw the scarred teenager standing in front of him. "Don't do that, kid. You're going to give someone a heart attack."

"I apologise. I didn't intend to startle you."

The man run a hand through his hair, througoutly embarrassed. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Could I grab a bite to eat?"

"Sure. Tenya also joining us? He worked quite long last night, I wouldn't be surprised if he were still sleeping."

"We're both early risers."

Tsuyoshi debated with himself for a second. He could ask this, but... wouldn't the kid be offended? The boy suddenly caught his eyes, obbiously noticing he was being scrutinised. "Is something the matter?"

"Say something if I offend you in any way, right? I heard somewhere that the firebenders were able to sense the sun rising and that's why they always rise early. Is that true?"

The boy seemed to ponder the question. "How would I know the difference? When I feel the sun's rays on my skin, I know it's time to get up. Do you feel the earth under your feet differently than those who are unable to bend the elements to their will?"

"I do. But I understand what you mean, explaining something that has been part of your life forever isn't easy. I guess you weren't around many who weren't firebenders."

Shoto seemed to hesitate again. _What's with him? Is he just that awkward or is he hiding something?_ Before he could continue the thought the boy spoke up. "That man yesterday, he asked me if I was of mixed blood. He was right. My mother was of water, not fire."

"That explains your eyes. Or one of them, I guess." He noted the tension in the boy's shoulders. "Don't worry, I have seen stranger things than mismatched eyes. Where's the water parent from, then? The Northern Water Tribe has kept itself pretty isolated. Actually" he scratched his head again "I haven't ever heard of a mixed blood between fire and water before. There are many mixtures between earth and water or earth and fire. But fire and water? Have never seen nor heard of any."

Shoto shrugged. "World's big."

"That it is, my boy. That it is."

xXx

Sometimes Toph wished she was a firebender.

Actually, she had never wished that before. But today, trudging through a wasteland of snow with only a vague idea where she was going had brought the thought to her at least five times already. _Then I could just incinerate this snow!_

She had been able to hitch a ride with a carriage travelling for some Earth Kingdom noble. Telling him her name and her "profession" as the Avatar's teacher had ensured her a speedy ride to the village the strange benders had first been seen. Yuketsu was slightly bigger than she had expected but gave off a completely deserted feel. Listening around she had managed to recreate the events of the day in question. One woman in particular was crying about a malevolent spirit using the appearance of a human to destroy them all. Oh well. At least it wouldn't get boring until Sparky got his royal backside there.

xXx

When Tenya joined Todoroki and Tsuyoshi in the empty bar the two were engaged in a discussion about the hardships of travelling. The man looked up and waved Tenya over. "How are you feeling, lad? Slept well?"

Definitely ignoring Todoroki's twitch Tenya gave a slight bow. "Very well. I wish to thank you again for your generous offer. It did us both good to spend a night in a real bed again."

"How long have you and your friends been on the road anyway?"

"Roughly a week", Todoroki supplied. "We had hoped to be faster."

The man nodded. "They'll arrive here soon? I fear there's a second storm coming, maybe today, maybe tomorrow."

The two heroes in training traded a glance. "If they keep up with the schedule they should arrive at nightfall today. "

"Which reminds me", Tenya chimed in, "we could really use some money before we continue on. Is there anything you could use our help for?"

Tsuyoshi shook his head. "I can give you the same work as last night again so you and your friends can stay the night. But I have no money to spare. But if you're interested, a few people are travelling to one of the neighboring villages to trade. They'd probably pay you for help with loading the goods. But you'll have to ask them if they have an ostrich horse you can borrow, on foot this journey would take multiple days. It will last until tomorrow evening at least."

Tenya sighed. "We'll have to talk it over."

"Suit yourselves. If only one of you helps me out tonight you've already done enough for me. One of you could accompany them."

The man rose from the table. His hand shot out and grabbed the edge as he seemed to struggle with his balance for a second. Quickly overplaying his moment of weakness the man shot the boys a grin. "You'll have to excuse me, I'll get another nap in. You'll find the merchants down the street, a house with a dark green door. Tell them I sent you and don't let them say no. They're merchants, they'll try haggling. Don't give in."

With that the man left them. Todoroki waited until he was out of earshot before he asked "What was that about?"

"Him stumbling? I'm not sure, he seems to be sligthly ill. He didn't fare all that good yesterday either."

Todoroki nodded slowly. "I could get some information from him. Concerning the elements and everything, the-"

"War." Tenya interrupted. "I also managed to gather some information. Let's trade while we search those merchants, right?"

xXx

Iroh watched the war balloon ascend into the air. The smile stayed plastered on his face even when the ship disappeared into the clouds.

The Dragon of the West had been pretty observant ever since his journey into the spirit realm. He didn't consider himself to be a sage, yet he knew the strange feelings and visions he got were not caused by ordinary means. Something was upsetting the spirits, disturbing the balance. _We've only just had half a year of peace now. Isn't it too soon for something like this to happen?_ It was a disturbance like he had never felt it before. He'd seen the fury of the Ocean using the Avatar as a vessel. He'd experienced the fury of countless spirits before.

Nothing compared to the feeling he got now. Somehow he couldn't shake the feeling that his nephew was going to be involved in whatever was going to happen. Were those strange firebenders an omen, a warning? Were they like the Sun Warriors, guardians who stayed hidden for centuries only to reappear when needed?

He hoped they were. His instincts told him they were going to need all the help they could get.

Because even if he had never felt it before, a part of him knew exactly what it was that set him on edge. Because all around him, cracks had formed between the entire world's energies. Tears ran through the fabric of reality itself.

He could only pray for his nephew, for his friends, for the entire world.

But whom could he pray to if even the spirits were afraid?

xXx

Shoto raised his hand and knocked on the door. The green paint was splintering under his fingers and the stairs' wood creaked under his feet. Once the house must have been an imposing and rich building. It towered over the entire village and dwarfed the buildings next to it. Still, its run down appearance spoke volumes to Shoto. Poverty really seemed to be a great issue in this world from what he had seen.

No one had seemed surprised do far at two teenagers asking around for work. Not that they had asked many people.

They waited in silence. Iida also seemed to take in the state of the building, likely coming to the same conclusions as Shoto himself. The taller boy seemed to be tired still. When the half fire, half ice hero had gone to sleep the previous night he'd tried being as quiet as possible as to not wake the other. Yet even when he'd stumbled and crashed into the doorframe due to his exhaustion the other hadn't even twitched in his sleep.

Ever since Stain, Shoto kept an eye on Iida. He knew all to well how fast rage could consume a person. He himself had been let down too often in his life, had become too cynical, too bitter. Tenya Iida was an aspiring hero, a leader, someone people trusted easily. He was... a good person, Shoto decided. He didn't ever want to see Iida going down the path of hatred, not against himself and not against anyone else.

He knew how much it chafed on Iida to be here. To be unable to use his quirk, unable to get them home. Iida always tried taking responsibility for everything. _He's not alone with that either._

Iida sleeping deeply shouldn't have made Shoto so uneasy. Was it only his instincts, honed by their time in the woods that told him they should be ready to move at the slightest danger? Was it something else?

They were all exhausted, that he was sure of. Which was another reason he wanted Iida to stay in the village and help Tsuyoshi. Endeavor had trained Shoto to be able to push past his exhaustion and bodily limits time and time again, he could handle a few more days. Iida, it seemed, neared his limits faster than expected. Of course the cold he had caught and tried hard to hide had to be considered. Shoto mentally shook his head. _Get a grip on yourself. Iida is the most responsible in our group. He'll manage just fine. He knows when he has to take a break._

After what seemed like an eternity footsteps sounded on the inside. A middle aged woman opened the door and looked them over. "Can I help you two boys with something?"

"Hello." He gave a slight bow. It seemed to take the place of a handshake here. "Tsuyoshi sent me here. He told me you're looking for someone to help the merchants during their journey."

She raised an eyebrow. "Did he now?"

For once Shoto was glad his father had also taught him how to hold himself during such conversations. Dealing with the richest and most influencal families their world had brought forth had taught Shoto a lot about dealing with business men.

"Indeed. I'm trying to make some money and was told you'd hire people."

She gave a sweet smile. A fake smile. "We don't just hire anyone. And I've heard all about you, little firebender."

He straightened his back. "Then you do also know that I can hold myself in a fight. There are many people out there just waiting for unguarded travellers to cross their way. I can help with transporting the goods and I can help with keeping everyone safe."

The woman gave him another once over. "I could consider giving you a little job. I hope you have a fast ostrich horse. If you slow the group down, you are out immediately. Without money."

Shoto startled. "I don't... I don't have an ostrich horse."

She gave another sweet smile. "Then I am sorry, but I won't be able to loan you one. If you cost me more than you gain me, why should I hire you?" Taking his silence as confirmation she tilted her head slightly and started pulling the door shut. "If you find an ostrich horse running around, you can come back here. If not, do not disturb me again."

With these words, the door snapped shut.

Iida let out a long sigh. "So much for that."

xXx

Lightning shot across the sky.

_Where am I?_

The sky seemed to break apart at the edges.

Stars were all around him.

There was no path, nothing to hold himself. He was floating, unable tom control his movements.

_That's... not right._

He tried turning around, but his body had nothing it could brace itself against. He couldn't control his movements at all.

_Why can't I... it's not only that._

His limbs were heavy. A tingling sensation ran through his spine.

_The stars... are they... moving?_

Lighning flashed again, jumping from one star to another. It spread out until it enveloped most of his field of vision.

When the flash was over, the stars had disappeared.

A dark cloud seemed to lay before him.

_What _is _this?_

Suddenly lights started to appear where the stars had vanished.

Hundreds of lights, like stars, but so much smaller.

He could vaguely discern the shape of a mountain. The lights laid at its' foot, like an ocean of tiny suns.

_Is this... a city?_

Black fog wavered around him, obscured his vision. It crept forward, ever so slowly, until the lights were invisible once again.

Another bolt of lightning passed overhead. This time, the stars it touched seemed to glow in innumerable colors, their light so bright he had to shield his eyes.

Yet he found that he couldn't.

Where his limbs had been heavy before they seemed to be made of stone now.

He couldn't close his eyes.

His eyes started to tear just as tendrils of the black smoke started sneaking around his body. Some seemed to gather around his unmoving limbs while others continued on towards the brightened stars.

Where they came into contact with the stars, the tendrils started oozing a strangely fluid mist.

It spread out.

Farther and farther it spread until the whole world was drenched in black.

It tore at his body.

No.

It tore at his very soul.

Panic clawed its way up into his throat.

_What's happening?_

He felt himself growing heavier.

Yet he felt strangely detached from reality.

Was this even reality?

Just as he feared he was going to float away something called out to him.

For a second the mist wavered and he could see the starry night sky again. There was a path made of stars under his feet.

Already his view started to get obscured by the mist again.

Then he finally heard it.

xXx

"The nerve of that woman..."

Shoto was well aware of the sympathetic look Iida shot him. He was beyond caring. "That was our only shot and she knew it. Damn it!"

His voice stayed silent, but his usual rather monotone voice was laced heavily with burning rage. Iida started to say something but shook his head and continued onwards.

Suddenly a thought raced through Shoto's head. "Wait a second. Maybe Lung has an ostrich horse I can borrow for the two days for some of the money."

"You think so?"

"There are some down at the stable. Only one that doesn't belong to anyone though."

Iida gave him a mistrustful glance. "There's something you're not telling me."

"She's not tame."

"Well darn."

Shoto was more than surprised that Iida didn't try to talk him out of going to the stable at all. But then again, Iida knew exactly how much worse their situation could get. Their friends depended on them to get money. They had no other choice. And if he had to loan an ostrich horse, so be it.

Carefully pushing the door open he was surprised to see Lung where he had already met him the previous night. He had bags under his eyes and seemed to be barely awake. Upon seeing the boys enter he laid everything down and came to greet them. "Back so early? I thaught this was a one-day-deal."

"It is, if everything goes according to plan." Shoto debated how much he should tell the man for a second before deciding that it didn't really matter. "Is there an ostrich horse you could loan me for two or three days? I'd pay you afterwards."

Lung stared at him for a second before realisation dawned upon his face. "You want to accompany the merchants."

"How'd you guess?"

"It's something that happens regularly." The man ran his hand over a saddle by his side. "You know that I have no ostrich horses I own. There's Beast, but you know..."

"She seemed to like me yesterday."

Lung gave an incredulous laugh. "Bit of a difference between letting you pet her and sending you to your death, kid."

Shoto closed the distance to the ostrich horse and held his hand out. A snout (or was it a beak?) came down and nuzzled his left hand. "You think she's probably belonged to a firebender before?" He still hadn't quite get used to the term, but at least now he knew how this world called their gifted. And somehow it fit. He commanded fire and ice, yes. But in essence he only bended it to his will. And it bended exactly as far as he told it to, no farther.

Lung watched the ostrich horses reaction and sighed. "Who knows. Frankly? You can try, I guess. Don't come complaining to me if she shatters your back."

Iida took a careful step towards the animal. Within the fraction of a second the calm creature changed into a beast straight out of a nightmare. Feathers raised she slammed her feet against the ground and snapped in Iida's direction.

Shoto gave her a slight tap at the shoulder and she calmed instantly. "I think she doesn't like you either."

Lung suddenly started laughing. "Well then, take her. Give me ten percent of what that witch Miriko gives you and we have a deal. Actually, if this works out, you might as well keep her. She just eats away all our rations and you're the first one she hasn't tried to kill instantly. Think about it."

xXx

"Aang!"

After what seemed like an eternity of screaming his name the young monk ripped his eyes open and shot up.

Katara used her arms to steady him. "Careful now. I called you for half an hour now."

The glow slowly faded from Aang's eyes and he looked around carefully. "What... just happened?"

She exchanged a glance with Sokka. Her brother had also been awakened by the Avatar's ominous glow. They had decided after the solstice festival to spend a few days at the western air temple before returning to the southern pole. The night had been completely calm until the Avatar spirit had awakened.

It hadn't done anything. It hadn't even sat up. Aang's tattoo's just started glowing.

It worried Katara to no end. Aang hadn't lost control of the Avatar state for half a year. He actually hadn't used it once since the end of the war.

Seeing Aang like that, not responding to anything, had shatteres something within her. Hearing him so afraid only dug even deeper.

Sokka gently rubbed Aang's back as the younger boy caught his breath. "What do you think happened?"

"I... don't know. There were stars and mist and darkness and lights and a city the size of an ocean and..." He trailed off. "Something's not right. I have to talk to the previous Avatars."

"Wait!" Katara put a hand on his arm and made sure he met her eyes. "You nearly lost yourself in the Avatar state just now. Is this really a good choice?"

"I'm not sure." Aang's gray eyes fell to the ground. "It seemed to tear everything apart. The whole world, the sky, the stars... I don't understand. I have to talk with them. I have to..."

His eyes dropped shut for a few moments before he hastily reopened them. "I have to talk to Roku, now!"

"Hey. Hey, Aang, please look at me." She gently laid a hand under his chin and forced him to look at her again. "Please, you have to sleep now. You are tired, so tired you can barely keep your eyes open. You can talk to Roku in the morning. It's alright."

Aang didn't answer. "It's alright", she repeated. He gave a tired nod and dropped back onto his back. The second his body hit the floor he was out like a light.

Sokka met her gaze. "I don't like this. I don't like this one bit."


	4. Of rumors and air travel

I'm so sorry.

"More time for writing" somehow morphed into "Hey, you loved that movie as a kid, let's rewatch it!"

And thus I fell into the bottomless pit that is Howl's moving castle.

I rewatched the movies, learned there were books, bought them, read them, read them again and again and read fanfiction and wrote fanfiction (that I'll probably never publish. Except if anyone here would be interested in a HMC/Harry Potter crossover. Then I'll upload it.) and in general lost my whole soul to this** masterpiece**. Upon seeing the movie I thought there was no way that Book!Howl could be even more of a drama queen.

Boy was I wrong.

And when I finally started crawling out of this pit, an old show from my childhood (Every Witch Way) demanded attention again... I have so many things I want, need to write, but the fandom is pretty much dead. Never really was alive in the first place. Oh well, I'll probably write it anyway, just without uploading... again...

Then came Hunter x Hunter and Kurapika hogged all my interest... then my sister got me into Bleach... I need a life.

Anyway, with thousand apologies (also for the long author's note, does anyone else actually read these?) I present to you this new chapter!

I was amazed how many people were happy with me including Mineta. I honestly feared it would turn readers away instead.

BgOtaku: Trust me, the spirit realm and the past lives are going to announce themselves in big fashion! Can't miss out on all those opportunities!

LadySunami: I'll have to be careful with you reading this story ;) I actually am not very well versed in the culture of Japan. While I knew somewhere in the back of my head that they have a five-elements system, it completely slipped my mind during writing. (If you want to, please write it! Would definitely read!) I had hoped the last chapter was clear, but I understand the confusion: Originally, it was planned that Shoto and Tenya would scout ahead, gather information, make a bit of money, stay the night and turn back to meet their friends halfway. This didn't work because Tsuyoshi has no money to spare. They just had to improvise a bit. About the other things, wait and see ;)

MystyRising: Sorry, I don't do shipping. At all. I like to watch my series for the plot, enjoy the character dynamics. While I read ships (mostly because you just can't avoid them anymore) I am always looking for stories where the plot is more important than just the ship. I've seen so many stories where the only summary was "It's GuyAxGuyB. That's all you need to know"... I write the story for the sake of the story, not to have two characters making out. Sorry to disappoint :(

deathnoteno1fan: Definitely because he's warm! I bet he's popular with cats.

HerkHerk: Glad to hear! Nee, ich tu nur so ;D

And also many thanks to all the others who kicked my lazy aßß back into gear! While I do not reply to all reviews I always take great joy in reading them!

xXx

Shoto carefully pulled on the reins. While Lung had told him what commands Beast would most likely listen to, he had reminded the boy sharply that knowledge alone wouldn't help him much in riding her. He was absolutely clueless about most animals – or people – and he probably couldn't count on help during the trip.

Upon leaving the stable he noticed Iida leaning against the corner of a house. The tall hero-in-training watched him with a slightly concerned expression. "Will you be alright out there?"

Shoto nodded offhandedly. "Sure. I can take care of myself just fine. What about you?"

The class rep shrugged. "I'll set off in a few minutes as well. Then I'll probably meet up with the others around noon. We should be back here in the late afternoon or early evening."

The younger acknowledged with another court nod. Silence descended between them. Neither of the two saw much point in small talk. After wishing each other good luck they parted ways. Shoto threw a quick glance at the snow-covered plains and shuddered. _If I never see snow again after this, it will still be too soon._ Not that someone with an ice quirk had high chances of avoiding snow.

He set off towards the green house again with Beast following closely behind. He arrived just in time to see a small group mounting their own ostrich-horses. The woman he had talked to earlier stood by the side. She noticed him quickly and smiled another bright fake-smile. Shoto gave a slight bow and greeted her. "Lady Miriko."

Her smile widened. "I see you have acquired an ostrich-horse. How convenient."

"A stroke of luck. A friend loaned her to me."

"I'm sure he did." She looked over her shoulder at the other men. Two were still busy attaching a pair of ostrich-horses to a cart. The animals seemed reluctant. She gave a small "Tsk" sound and turned back to Shoto. "I pay by performance. The quicker you get back, the more money you earn. Factors like how quick and hard you work are not the only ones. If there are any uncommon factors like bandit attacks or that dreadful storm, you'll earn more depending on how much you pull your weight in those situations. Don't even try lying to me about your efforts afterwards, or you'll get nothing. Am I clear?"

"Crystal clear", Shoto affirmed quickly. With a sharp nod she turned his back to him and stalked over to a man who radiated authority. The boy made a mental note to stay on the other man's good side.

After a few minutes the whole group was ready to set off. The apparent leader impelled his ostrich-horse forward until he was next to Shoto. "I'm Han. Just follow my orders and everything will be fine. Just so you know, everyone here knows you are a firebender and most don't trust your kind. Be careful, boy. They're already whispering amongst themselves. Less people coming back, more money for them. Don't count on anyone to have your back in the case of a fight."

Shoto glanced at the other men and quickly saw what Han meant. About two thirds looked at him with pure malice. He gazed back at the man. "Thanks for the warning."

"Anytime." His voice rose. "Let's set off! I want to be there before the next storm hits!"

xXx

Eijiro Kirishima perked up at a small speck moving towards the plains with great speed. A toothy smile broke out on his face. "Here comes Iida!", he yelled to the others.

Kaminari and Midorya appeared by his side. The latter's face showed confusion. "Why's he alone?" Eijiro shrugged. "Ask him, not me."

Five minutes later the deplaced students found themselves sitting around a quickly raised fire. They didn't bother unpacking most of their stuff, just enough to help themselves to a few cups of water and some bread. Iida was quickly describing how the people in this world seemed to think, how they behaved and clothed as well as what he knew about the war.

He barely had time to finish before Midorya and Yaoyorozu explained their theory about these world's people only being able to control one element per person.

At this Iida blanched slightly. "Then I hope that Todoroki doesn't get in a situation where he needs to use his ice."

Midorya quickly jumped in again. "Speaking of him, why did you two part?"

"We only managed to get ourselves a room for the night in exchange for some work. He's off with a few traders to a neighbor village. They should be back tomorrow evening."

"Considering how long it took us to get here I doubt one day longer will make much difference", Yaoyorozu sighed. "We should set off in the early morning that day. Ba Sing Se is a bit further away. I believe we can all do without another night under the stars."

Iida nodded slowly. "And there seems to be a second storm coming as well. The villagers say it will hit either early this night or tomorrow. We can sit this one out."

"Another storm?" Eijiro did definitely not whine. "How is that possible?"

Uraraka looked up at the seemingly calm sky. "We are in another world, after all."

"It must be quite common here", Iida told his classmates, "I was warned that the storms here often are followed by a second, smaller storm. Like an aftershock at home."

Kaminari let himself flop to the ground. His whole body practically screamed _I'm so done with this crap!_ Eijiro found himself silently agreeing. This was not what he had signed up for.

xXx

Zuko leaned down on the railing and looked over the endless snow. He silently thanked his uncle for the Breath of Fire technique. Both of the guards were shivering. His yellow eyes scanned the landscape. In the distance he could see the village appear. It had taken only seven hours to get into this part of the Earth Kingdom. From his chosen landing point it would be some more hours until he reached Yuketsu.

The young Fire Lord let his mind wander until the balloon touched the ground.

Both soldiers traded nervous glances with another. "My Lord, are you sure you want to continue on foot?"

Zuko looked up at the sky. It spoke of calm weather. His skin told a different story. "I'll be fine", he dismissed the guards. "However, there is a storm coming. You should return as quickly as you can. I wouldn't want anyone to be in the air while the wind rages about." Was it really only one and a half years ago that he had screamed at his uncle when the man warned him of the storm closing in?

The guards glanced at each other again. Zuko barely kept a smile in check. "You have your orders. Return to the capital and let the Dragon of the West know I'll arrive at the village before nightfall."

This time they reacted instantly to the order. With a chorus of "Yes, my Lord!" they set to prepare for lift-off. Zuko grinned to himself and melted into the shadows. A few seconds later he heard a shocked exclamation. Listening to his soldiers bickering and worrying if it was normal he could disappear so quickly he started missing his time on the road. _Had anyone told me a year ago that I'd miss my ship, my crew or simply life on the run this much I'd probably have killed him myself._

He left the balloon behind. His feet automatically led him to a barely visible trail left behind by some of the local wildlife. Part of him wanted to take to the trees immediately. The other part quickly warned him of the danger of slipping on the snow. _That would be something_, he thought, _Fire Lord Zuko reigned for half a year before he died because he fell out of a tree while traveling the Earth Kingdom in disguise. I just _know_ Sokka would find a way to talk to me after my death just so I can never live that down. Never._ He threw a glance behind him and sighed at the obvious footsteps. They had snow in the fire nation as well, but not in these large quantities.

He could only imagine how irritated Toph must be by now. A tiny smile gnawed at his lips.

xXx

Sokka thanked the merchant on the opposite side of the stand and took his purchased goods. While Aang recovered from his nightly stunt and Katara looked after her downed boyfriend – he still couldn't wrap his head around that one, it gave him the oogies – it fell to the water tribe warrior to take care of their gear, food, entertainment... maybe Katara would disagree on the last one.

He mentally double checked the list of things they needed. Normally food wasn't really a problem, but during the harsh winter that seemed intent on taking over a good quarter of the globe it was getting hard finding non-meat goodies for Aang. How the boy could hold out on the joys of fresh meat was still a mystery to Sokka. Deciding he had not forgotten anything, he set out to the woods were Appa waited.

Sokka was just about to leave the village when he heard the first whispers. The Avatar had apparently been sighted in a small Earth Kingdom village near Ba Sing Se together with the Fire Lord. His feet came to an abrupt halt. "Where did you hear that?" The wounds tumbled from his mouth before he could stop himself.

One of the men talking looked up at him with a frown. "Oh, a merchant from Oiwaka told us. No idea where he got the story from. I'm just glad the Avatar thinks about us normal people a bit! But I seriously don't know how to feel about the Fire Lord running around on Earth Kingdom territory."

"Nah, Zuko's a pretty chill guy." This received two very startled and incredulous looks. Sokka felt himself flush.

"You know the Fire Lord personally or what?" He gulped. The sudden hostility in the other's voice definitely wasn't a fidget of his imagination.

"We, uh, I met him. Kinda. Got to know him a bit before he, uh, got crowned and all. He's not that bad."

"Compared to his family he's practically a saint, right?" laughed the second man.

"That's no big feat", the first scoffed back. "Whole family of maniacs. I don't care if he's a nice guy or a war hero or the Avatar's firebending master. He could be a dragon for all I care. As long as he stays in that shiny palace of his and doesn't bother with his subordinates I couldn't care less."

Sokka bit his tongue and turned tail. Zuko definitely cared for his people, even more than he cared to admit. He understood their struggles, their frustration. And he had become quite upset when it finally sunk in that he could never do enough for them.

_It's enough to drive me insane_, had stood in sharp and clear script on a letter Sokka had received a few weeks prior to the festivities._ I can understand their worries and pains, but I can't make them go away. I can merely hope to sooth their unease and lend a helping hand. Even if I were to overrule every last person by force and take care of all their issues myself, I would merely create new problems. I would turn into a tyrant. As it is, I can send soldiers to help on the fields where the crops refuse to grow, I can reduce taxes and reform the school system in order to turn the hearts of those still young enough not to feel as bitter and world-weary as I do._

_As Fire Lord, I should be able to fix the problems of this country, yet it feels as if I am staring up at a mountain stretching up into the clouds, trying to climb it with my feet bound and my legs broken. The ground before me is shaky and uneven, the slightest misstep could have an avalanche coming down onto my head, throwing me head over heels to the very foot of the mountain and burying me there. Should I fall, only the spirits know if I have the strength to get back up. To try walking the risky path again. A path made even deadlier by the heavy opposition to my very existence by those still loyal to my father Ozai..._

It had been a very angst-filled letter. Sokka always felt a bit helpless when he was face to face with his fiery friend. Yet he understood why Zuko kept confiding in him.

Aang was already bearing the burden of the Avatar. Katara, while being able to lend a friendly ear, didn't have the tiniest grasp of political skirmishes. She didn't understand the problems the Fire Lord faced. After all, he was the sole ruler, shouldn't he be able to just order someone to do something? And if he didn't know what to do, weren't there any specialists who he could task with a certain problem? Toph obviously understood a little about politics and the trouble of trying to fix a country that had war and violence integrated into their very hearts for a hundred years, but despite all her abilities, she was still only a thirteen year old girl that liked to smash her problems away with pure strength.

Why Zuko didn't confide in his uncle, Sokka could only guess. Maybe he felt as if he owed the man too much already.

He felt honored, knowing the leader of the most advanced country in the world – because sadly that was exactly how it was. At least until Sokka would turn the tables on him and those stuck up North Water Tribe nobles by inventing lots and lots of cool stuff! - had such high regards in his opinion. Even if most of the time he only sent back quipped replies coupled with a short "That's rough, buddy." He didn't have enough details to be of any help, and Zuko didn't write because he needed help. He wrote to vent his anger and frustration to someone he felt was safe.

Safe.

Was anyone truly safe? Aangs strange nightmare grated on Sokka's subconsciousness. While it certainly wasn't the first time Aang had unleashed his bending in his sleep – which in turn caused Sokka himself nightmares – it was the first time the Avatar spirit had made itself known during his dreams. The panicked state his friend had been stuck in before falling asleep again also made his skin crawl. As did the fact that Aang had still to awaken.

Sokka trudged through the almost knee-deep snow and called out for Appa. The sky bison landed next to him almost immediately. "Can't wait to get back to your partner, huh Appa?" He climbed up into the saddle and shot a quick glance back to the village. Who had they seen if not Aang and Zuko? Probably the rumors where exactly that, rumors. Yet for some reason his heart felt heavy. Something was going to happen. Something where a normal, powerless guy like him would have to be very careful unless he wanted to end up dead in the snow."

He sensed Appa's own uneasiness almost vibrating through the bison's whole body. "It's alright, buddy-boy. Let's get back, alright? You'll see, Aang's probably already back on his feet and bouncing around the temple or driving Katara insane or flirting with her or maybe even-" He quickly interrupted himself. He did _not_ want to imagine his sister and his best friend making out.

His overactive brain failed to comply and sent him picture after picture until he was ready to gauge his eyes shut. He definitely had to take his mind off of that somehow. For the moment he decided on getting back to his sister before night fell. He could worry about the rumors later. Quickly pulling the reins into his hands, he closed his eyes for a second. One problem at a time. Don't look at the bigger issue until you solved this one.

"Come, Appa. Yip Yip!"

xXx

Toph curled her bare toes into the wood and groaned. She really hated this weather.

Part of her wanted to go out and meet Sparky on his way to the village. There was just one small problem: She didn't know when he would arrive nor when. With a frown she yielded. Two problems. Obviously.

Yuketsu was a nice village, she had decided immediately upon arriving. Some of the people were a bit strange, most were weary, a few downright hostile. Apparently there were even some people who believed the Avatar was at fault for everything and she as his Earthbending Master was guilty per default. She didn't know guilty of what. She didn't really care either. However she feared what those people would say about Sparky.

She relaxed further into her comfy armchair. One of the few luxuries she really enjoyed. Toph had just started slipping off into dozing when there was a knock at the door. For a moment she debated ignorin whoever it was and allowing her bored body to sleep. A low groan escaped her as she pushed herself up and called out "Come in!"

With the wooden floor it was impossible for her to tell eho her visitor was until he spoke up. "Good to see you, Toph."

"Sparky!" A wide grin broke out on her face. She motioned in his general direction, inviting him in. "I'd say the same for you, but I can't actually see you and the floor is wood so I really have no clue how you look right now or where exactly you are."

"Who'd be I to waste such opportunity?" Toph did definitely _not_ yelp as his voice was suddenly almost directly next to her ear. She did, however, whirl around to send a punch at his face that went wide by so much it wasn't even funny anymore. However, she managed to connect just fine with a follow-up punch to his stomach.

Sparky let out a very un-Fire Lordy squeal and shuffled away. "Serves you right! Don't you ninja up on me!"

He let out a wheeze that might have been agreement or a warning that he was about to suffocate. Since she could hear his clother rustling as he let himself sink into her chair, she figured he probably wasn't in much danger of accidentaly killing the Fire Lord. "I thought you were made of sterner stuff", she told him before moving to her chair. "Move it, that's mine."

Apparently seeing reason the young man fled her territory before further harm could befall him. "I normally am." Almost as an afterthougth, he added "Ouch."

She smirked at him (what she hoped was him) and sat down in the most dinified manner she could muster. "Honored Fire Lord, this humble Lady did not anticipate his majesty's arrival at this early time. I offer my sincerest apologies for the horrendous impression his highness must have gained from this unfortunate incident."

She only heard a faint rustling of Sparky's sleeves before he flicked something at her. It bounced off harmlessly and tumbled to the floor. Still it startled her enough to break the act. She pouted at him and crossed her arms. A low chuckle met her ears. "Sorry. You sounded waaay too much like a certain advisor so I had to stop you before I fell asleep. Also, it's utter night already, can't even see where I'm stepping anymore."

"Poor you", she stuck out her tonue. "Also, falling asleep while talking to professionals, now that is very unroyal behaviour."

She didn't need to see Sparky to know he shrugged with his arms crossed and his head leant to the side in that hurt turtleduck kind of way. "I mastered the art of dozing with my eyes open, so nobody can say anything. And if they complain, I _am _the Fire Lord. I can just have them all incarcerated if they bore me so much I actually fall from the throne and make a fool out of myself. I'll just blame it on them."

Toph beamed at him widely. "But seriously, you arrived much faster than I thought."

"Wind's been good. Snow was a hazzle though."

"Can't you just mealt it?"

"Could, but it's so much effort. Also, I felt a storm coming and decided to keep my strength should I get caught in it."

"Yeah, there was a blizzard or something yesterday. Follow-up coming tonight, according to the villagers."

"Thought so." Sparky must have gotten to his feet at some point since his voice was suddenly over _there_. She growled at him behind gnarled teeth. "You stop that right now."

"Stop what?" He had definitely moved further.

A common misconception about Toph's condition was that her ears were sensitive enough that no one could sneak up on her. She knew it was because normally people who lost one sense learned to pay better attention to their other senses, thus being able to readjust to a missing sense. However, most of those weren't Earthbenders. Not only did she focusmost on her Earthsense, but she threw arounnd huge boulders for fun. Huge boulders which were quite noisy when impacting with flightly Airbenders or other nuisances. If she had to be completely honest, her hearing was rather bad. Not that she had any means of comparison. Sparky was one of the few who understood that and wouldn't stop playing dirty as soon as she gave him the opportunity.

Feeling around a bit, she found the dual blades of his Dao swords. Deciding to give him a bit of a scare, she pulled, making them jerk towards her.

Too fast. She quickly let go of the blades and heard them clatter to the floor.

"Took them off when I came in, didn't you hear?"

She crossed her arms and scowled.

xXx

Shoto winced slightly when his feet hit the ground. He was used to rough training and pain, but riding for hours over hard terrain had taken a toll on him unlike anything he had felt before. A hand landed heavily on his back, nearly knocking him off his feet. Looking over his shoulder he found Han standing next to him. "How ya holding up, kid?" The dual quirk wielder noticed the man's hands trembling by his sides. The wind had picked up mercilessy during the last few hours of their treck and heavy snowfall kept obscurin their vision. It whad not been a storm quite yet, but close enough.

"I'm fine. Thank you for your concern."

"I heard you Firebenders don't do well in extreme cold."

Shoto carefully filed that piece of information away. "This is within my tolerance limits."

A short laugh escaped the older. !Alriht then. Lemme show you how to tie the reins correctly."

"Is it that difficult?"

"More than you think." Han winked him over, showin him how to wrap the thin leather stripes around the metal rings placed on the outer wall of their destination covered by a small roof to shelter the animals.. It was another small inn surrounded by a mere dozend houses In Shoto's eyes, the few buildings didn't even qualify as a village. Han smacked his shoulder slightly. "Pay attention! This is important, or do you want to walk home? I'd leave you behind immediately!" The boy winced as he felt eyes boring into his back. While most of his travelling companions had apparently decided he wasn't worth the hassle and left him alone, there were still four people left whom he was sure would not miss any chance to get rid of him.

Carefully watching the way Han's hands moved he tied Beast to one of the rings. "No, not like that", the man sighed. "Too long. She could trip herself, get her legs tangled or rip through the leather. Don't make it too short either, or she could get panicked."

The Flame Hero's son untied the knot three times until Han was satisfied. He turned to enter the inn when he heard a scratching sound and looked back. To his utter astonishement, Beast had somehow managed to get a leg over the leather straps and was left with it hanging down. He could only stare at her. Han looked back as well and started laughing. "Oh, I see. She's one of those."

"One of who?" Shoto could already feel a headache beginning to form. _Leave it to me to find trouble even here._

"She wants you to pay attention to her. Tangling herself up like that makes sure she gets that. You'll probably have to untangle her every few minutes."

"Just great." _Who needs sleep anyway._

With a smirk Han pointed at a bag he had slung over the railing. "Give her something to eat and go inside. If you are long gone by the time she's finished, she'll probably be alright with staying still. Best chance you've got. We all can need the sleep."

Following the man's lead Shoto quickly fed the animal and hurried after the leader. "May I ask you something?"

After a silent confirmation, he inquired "Why is it that you are reacting so calm to me? Most people have been extremely put off by my abilities and heritage. Why not you too?"

"I fought in the Earth King's army at Ba Sing Se. On the outter wall. Finally got transferred outta there just a few days before tire Nation Army started sieging it for the second time." Han's eyes had a strange, far away look. "When I was travelling to my new garrison, I had a run in with some Fire Nation soldiers from a supply route. They had been trapped in an avalanche. Three of them could free themselves. One died on the spot. The last one was stuck underneath the rubble, face to face with his dead companion. He couldn't move. The boulder had hit him in a way it didn't do too much damage, but it was unstable. One wrong move and he would have been crushed." The dark eyes closed as the man's face scrunched up in pain. "I knew that they were enemy soldiers, but leaving someone to die that way is not my style. I bended the boulder off of him and helped them bury their fallen comrade. They were just as weary from the war as I was. In the end, we were all just soldiers fighting because our leaders told us to fight. We were told the Fire Nation was full of monsters who would kill us without a moment's hesitation. They were told the barbaric countries had to be reformed to bring wealth and prosperity to the whole world, a glorious future under the rule of the Fire Lord. They were told we were monsters in the same way as we were told. We are the same, Fire Nation or Earth Kingdom or Water Tribe. I guess only the Wind Nomads were different, but we'll never know, right? After all, once the Avatar dies, there will be nothing left from their civilisation at all."

Shoto felt himself stiffen. "Nothing?" His voice broke ever so slightly.

"I guess some of their architecture will remain. Their temples are supposed to be really beautiful. There are certainly some people who are interested in at least preseving knowledge about them. But once the Avatar is dead, the Air Nomads will be gone forever. It's not really a new thought. After all, they were thought to be extinct for a hundred years before the Avatar arrived."

"I can't help but wonder if there really are no survivors? That seems... implausible to me. To eradicate a whole culture without leaving any survivor should be impossible."

"There are some who believe they only went into hiding, that some survived. But the Fire Lord tried everything in his power to look for survivors. If there really are Airbenders left, I fear they won't really be Air Nomads anymore, you know?" Han sighed deeply before pushin the door open. Warmth met their faces. "Enough of the depressing stuff already. We will sell the goods in the early morning tomorrow and leave two hours after sunrise. Make yourself comfortable until then, only three of us are needed for the actual selling and buying. Just don't be late, got it?"

xXx

Katsuki fell back into the mattress with a contented sigh. Finally getting out of the snow felt like entering heaven.

The group had arrived in the small village shortly before nightfall. The inn-keeper Four-Eyes had talked to allowed them all to stay the night, but claimed he wouldn't be able to give them all food. Enough travellers felt hurried enouh to leave between the two storms, leaving their rooms early. Thanks to that, the group had a total of four rooms between them. Thy bunked together within their usual groups.

For once, Katsuki wouldn't have minded sharing the room even with the most annoying of his classmates. It felt awesome getting some warmth into his body again. It was still too cold for him to produce his usual amounts of sweat, thus his powers were still weakened. A fact that annoyed him to no end.

The fact that Shitty Hair seemed intent on making him feel even more vulnerable made him irritable. The redhead did well in hiding his advances, but it was obvious how he always took a careful step back and watch Katsuki eat or sleep from the back. Only when he seemed to feel the explosive boy had done enough for his health would he take care of himself. He could feel his hands ballin into fists.

He wasn't weak. He didn't need protection. Maybe the circumstances were less than ideal, but he was still Katsuki Bakugo. He had ranked first on the entrance exam. He had won the sports festival. Yet still people wouldn't stop looking down on him!

He didn't need it. Katsuki pulled the blanket over his head, tucking his legs under his chin. He didn't need help. He didn't need Shitty Hair and least of all that nerd Deku or...

But that was the problem, wasn't it? Katsuki bit his lip to keep from screaming out his frustration. They did need each other this time. No one knew what they were up against. They were all sure they'd have to wait for rescue. Finding their own way home seemed less plausible wiuth each second passing by. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying tokeep the unwelcome thoughts out. He felt powerless.

It was out in the open. Katsuki Bakuo, who had been looked up to all his life, who had been told he would be the strongest one day, felt utterly powerless.

It was a feeling that had gradually increased over the months since joining UA. He remembered his shock at the immense power his classmates possessed. The pure terror gripping his heart when they were surrounded by villains. The utter horror of finding himself trapped in Shiaraki's lair with no way out, screaming in his heart to be rescued. The slude villain incident had seemed so tame compared to the other attacks. It frightened him enough to take his breath away. How often had he overplayed his vulnerability with harsh words and even harsher actions? It had alienated him even more from his classmates. From those who miht well be his only chance at getting back home.

He had started cultivating friends, sure. The crew some morons amicably had baptized Bakusquad held each other in high regards. Half'n'Half seemed to be under the impression that he could get friendly with him as well. And Deku never had gotten the hint in the first place. Any of those wouldn't leave him behind. Of course the others wouldn't, either.

He felt his body starting to tremble at the thought of havin to be saved. He knew, realistically, that his classmates wouldn't even think twice about helping him. He also knew they were strong enough. Yet he still felt the world breaking away under his feet.

The bed dipped down as someone sat next to him. Katsuki didn't move, carefully keeping his breathing even. He could almost smell the tension radiatin off the other person. "Uh, you are asleep, aren't you?" Shitty Hair sounded... pathetic. His voice was breaking at the end. He sounded as if he was going to cry. Katsuki felt himself stiffen.

"So, uh, I just... well... I hope you aren't angry at me for trying to take care of you a bit? No, that sounds wrong, I mean, I'm not really doing anything, just looking out a bit and so on... Oh man, I have no idea what I'm saying." Shitty Hair's voice became muffled. He had probably laid his chin up on his knees again, like he always did when he was feeling unsure. It always made his voice strange somehow. "I guess I just want to give a little bit back? You always pull us forward, push us to do our best simply by standing next to us. I can't even believe how hard it must be right now. I mean, we all are in the same boat with the _can't return_ thing, but we at least can still use our quirks. Damn, I am so afraid right now. I guess I always feel comfortable knowing you're around because I know you'll have my back, but now you're not trustin yourself and everybody's so _down_, you know?" Shitty Hair sat silently for a few seconds before he rose to his feet. "It's not much, but no matter how you feel right now, _I _ still trust you with my life. And always will, got that? If I can trust you, than you can trust you too."

The door opened, signaling Dunce Face's return from the bathroom. "Your turn for the bath. Man do I miss showers, but it feels amazing lying in the hot water!" The electricity user laid down on his futon and started snorin almost immediately. Shitty Hair chuckled slightly. "Off I go. Oi, and Bakugo? You can trust me, too."

In the privacy of his own thoughts, Katsuki decided that maybe, just maybe trusting Kirishima wasn't so bad after all. The smile still tugged at his lips as he fell asleep.


	5. Of taverns and returns

Well, I fell out of love with Bleach again. The story started out great, but it quickly turned into duels spanning over 4 (!) episodes, flashbacks over flashbacks over flashbacks, all characters except Ichigo were sidelined completely... I got to episode 150 without all the filler episodes and seasons. Sad for it. I will one day finish the show, but for now, I'll focus on this writing and my new obsession with Fullmetal Alchemist. Binge watched the Brotherhood one in 3 days and started the 03 series as well. Might just write something for that too.

Ed looks like a Disney princess (only that they are taller).

(If I don't update anytime soon, he probably found that comment and clobbered me. Help.)

Since a few people expressed their interest in the HMC/HP crossover, I'll be giving that one its final touches and upload it as soon as it feels ready.

Vcool: It's about half a year since the end of the war. For the moment Todoroki sneaked in as main protagonist, I will try to give all characters their chance to shine though. Yes, I know what you mean... one show's characters are overpowered and the others are downplayed in a way that makes my stomach churn. I love reading crossovers more than anything, but if I have to stop halfway through because my fav is reduced to nothing but a stepping stone for another show's character... sigh. I hope I can avoid that!

JTD3: I'm at a loss as to how I can reply to your kind words! When I read your review I sat smiling at my phone like an idiot for at least 5 minutes. Thank you!

the mysterious Mr.E: Not only have I considered it, I had a full plot carved out into my head for years! I just love X-Men Evolution. Next to the Anime it was the only X-Men adaption I really felt comfortable with. Wolverine and the X-Men? The movies? Watched them, but I didn't really get into it. There is like one scene in the first movie that made me laugh ("Prove it.") and the Apocalypse one was ok. Evolution however made me laugh, cry and cheer for the characters. Especially loved the dynamics between Logan and Scott. I'll have to search if I have my old drafts still. If not, I'll start something new. Now you've got me hyped for that crossover again!

(How did this story get almost 200 favs and 300 followers? I'm awed!)

On with the story!

xXx

Ochako Uraraka woke with a sneeze.

The sun had fallen through a slit between the curtains, tracing a thin line across the room's floor and furniture. A quick look affirmed Yaoyorozu was still asleep on the other bed. It was no surprise, for the other girl had used much more power than most of her peers.

Ochako herself was exhausted beyond belief as well. She had used her quirk to help their group as much as possible. It didn't feel as if she had really done something notably, yet her body still protested against the harsh treatment.

The brunette threw her blanket back and slipped her clothes on, thankful to notice they had dried up during the night. With another glance at the sleeping vice president she sneaked out of the room. The door shut without a sound.

She stood in the middle of the hallway, unsure about what to do with herself. If the sun had already risen this high in winter, they must have slept way longer than planned. She felt guilty at this, after all the students had promised to help the inn's owner – whose name just kept slipping her mind no matter how often she heard it – in exchange for the rooms. Deciding not to waste any more time, she slowly descended the stairs. Passing through the hallway she found herself opening the door to the inn's dining room. Behind the counter stood Iida.

The taller student failed to notice her entering. He was rigorously cleaning mugs. From the deep frown on his face (as well as the almost glimmering color of the mug) he had been lost in thoughts for a while. She continued watching him for a second before she spoke up. "That one looks pretty clean to me."

Iida flinched visibly. He put the mug down and turned his attention to Ochako. "Good morning to you, Uraraka! You are up early. Have you gotten enough sleep? No one else is up yet, you can go lay down for a few more hours if you want. Having our bodies well rested before we continue our march is our top priority!"

Ochako sensed a lecture coming and quickly put her hands up in surrender. "I feel rested, don't worry! I'll make sure to get another hour of sleep in before we continue, I promise. Do you need any help?" To her surprise, it wasn't a lie. While her body screamed at her due to the abuse it had suffered in the last weeks, she still felt rested. The thought that she only felt rested in comparison to those weeks crossed her mind, but she brushed them away quickly. Her mind, after all, felt calmer and more capable than it had in months.

The other shook his head slowly. "I guess not? Our host isn't up yet, he wasn't feeling well. I took care of the majority of his daily duties by now. I would appreciate your help with cleaning those though." He motioned at a row of dirty dishes. "It is a hassle trying to get them clean without running water."

Ochako nodded and stood next to him. It was immediately clear that Iida himself was pushing his limits. He had passed three times the way his classmates had in the last two days. The exhaustion was visible in the slow, deliberate way he moved as well as in the deep bags under his eyes.

They worked together in silence. Until Ochako found herself rolling her eyes fondly. "The same goes for you. Go lay down, class rep."

Iida smiled sadly. "I wouldn't be able to get any rest."

"Why's that?"

"Why shouldn't it?" He let out a deep sigh. "I apologize. I guess I hate feeling powerless."

He startled somewhat as her hand came to rest on his arm. One finger was curled inwards to keep her quirk from affecting him accidentally. "We all do. You can talk to us about this."

"Can you?" Iida dropped down onto a barstool. His whole body language screamed of defeat. "I am class representative. I am supposed to lead us through this, but I haven't been able to accomplish anything. I failed to keep us safe in the villain's attack, I made us stay out in a harsh and potentially lethal environment for two weeks just because I was too scared to move forward and I failed to keep out group united." He vented sharply. "I am afraid. So deeply afraid of making any more mistakes. I've made so many already." His eyes had grown haunted by the time he finished. Ochako gripped his arm firmer, trying to show him she understood and accepted his fears without patronizing him.

"We are all still alive. You couldn't do anything in the attack, you had your reasons for staying near the original portal, and we all decided it would be best to split up. And it worked out alright. Don't try to carry the whole world on your shoulders, okay?"

Iida nodded meekly. His uncharacteristic outburst seemed to have depleted him of all energy. "Go lay down", she repeated. "Shouldn't a leader also know when it is time to let his teammates take over? Rest up a bit. The world will still be here when you come back."

"Will ours be too?"

Ochako gave him an encouraging smile. Iida caught her eye, held her sharp gaze. His face relaxed ever so slightly until the hint of a smile ghosted around his lips. "Thank you, Uraraka. I will."

_Take care of the others too, _his eyes said. _Don't let them run wild._

_I won't, _hers promised. The boy nodded at her and disappeared through the door.

Ochako picked up the next plate and started wiping it down. Performing such a mundane task after fighting the forces of nature felt surreal. It gave her a strange sense of calmness. A smile tugged at the corners at her mouth. Perhaps this was the turning point. It could only go upwards from here.

xXx

Momo's long ears perked up.

Katara didn't turn her eyes away from her sleeping boyfriend. She hadn't heard Appa landing, but judging by Momo's subtle movements he must have returned.

Sokka had been gone for longer than she had anticipated. It had made her uneasy, knowing her brother was out by himself with Aang down. If something had happened to him, she probably wouldn't have noticed it was too late.

During the war, she had often feared for his safety. Sokka had no choice but to rely on traditional weapons. He was a master with his Boomerang and his sword fighting skills were amazing as well, especially for a beginner. However he had no shield against a powerful attack from a bender. For Katara, raising a wall of ice was as easy as standing up. Toph was able to move tons of earth to shield herself if necessary. Aang could shield himself with both of those. In terms of defense, Zuko was only barely above Sokka, even his strongest flames were ill fitted to shatter his enemies attacks completely unless he fought against other firebenders. Yet Sokka had nothing but the ability to dodge.

It felt almost like a betrayal, thinking of her brother as weak in terms of fighting. Because he _wasn't_. Still, only one second of hesitation could get him crushed far more easy than the rest of her group.

Hearing her brother approach, she felt herself unable to face him.

Sokka set the bag down next to her and reached her a few herbs commonly used to brew a strengthening sort-of-tea drink. Iroh had recommended it to her once, shortly after the end of the war. Nodding her thanks at her brother, she set to work again.

Katara could tell almost immediately that her brother had picked up on her foul mood. It wouldn't be long now before... yep, there was it.

A calming hand was laid on her shoulder. "He'll be just fine. He survived far worse, didn't he? And he has the best healer by his side, so you have nothing to worry about."

This was also what she had feared, but it wasn't the cause of her inner turmoil. Yet she gave her older brother the hint of a smile.

Sokka settled down by the small fireplace and huffed. "So. I hears something interesting at the market. Wanna guess?"

She gave him the evil eye and waited for her brother to elaborate. His grin fell into a pout. "You are no fun. Alright, here's what: Apparently Zuko was near Ba Sing Se a few days ago."

The girl felt her fingers stiffen. She put the rag in her hand aside and turned to her brother. "He could have gone there after the Festival, the war balloons are quick enough. But why wouldn't he tell us? If he wanted to visit Ba Sing Se, we would have accompanied him, wouldn't we?"

Sokka pulled his shoulders up. "He should have, yes. After all, if he asked Aang, he could have asked us two as well, right?"

"What even are you talking about?"

"Apparently someone sighted our Avatar and Fire Lord traveling together about three days of march away from Ba Sing Se. Isn't that something? They really could have told us."

Katara stared at her brother, then at her still sleeping boyfriend. "How can this be? Who would pose as the Avatar?" As soon as she had said that, she remembered the group of Avatar imposters on the ferry. "Nevermind. But why?"

"Don't ask me", Sokka drawled, "I'm the planning guy. I don't do the whole what-motivates-who-to-do-what thingy. It just gives me the creeps, you know? Aang has been kinda off these last few days and at the same time a second Avatar runs around? I'm skeptical."

"Perhaps they are just that, only rumors", Katara supplied weakly.

"They could be." A sigh escaped the concerned warrior. "I just have a bad feeling. It reminds me of that time with the forest spirit, I guess? There's this... cold feeling in the air. Not like, _cold_ cold, but like it could freeze my very soul? You know, that one you always get when you are around strong spirits."

This startled her. "What are you talking about?"

"You mean you never felt that? There is a... ice cold feeling in the air, as if the very oxygen is trying to freeze into crystals. I felt that ever since my, eh, trip to the spirit world."

Katara stared at him for a moment. "I heard people who've been to the spirit world are able to experience things differently. Does that mean... there is a spirit here? Now? Did it possess Aang?"

"I don't know. I just don't know. It would explain his strange behaviour yesterday night. Also why he still hasn't woken up." Sokka pulled out his Boomerang, clenchin it in his hand. Drawing strength from this, he continued on. "But this feels further away somehow. Also broader? Like one giant spirit floating over the world. But the center is somewhere further east. I'd estimate somewhere north of Ba Sing Se but not quite at the Northern Air Temple."

A heavy weight settled on Katara's shoulders. "Where a second Avatar and the Fire Lord were sighted."

"Yeah."

They sat in contemplative silence. Sokka rose to his feet slowly, patting his sister on the arm encouragingly. "If Aang hasn't woken up by tomorrow morning, we travel to Oiwaka. The merchant who told the story came from there. Perhaps they can give us more information." He extended his arm and pulled her up to her feet as well. "You haven't slept at all since Aang woke up, right? I'll watch over him now. You lay down for a bit."

Katara wanted to protest, but a wave of dizziness held her words back. Instead she nodded at her brother. There was nothing more she could do for Aang now. She had tried everything already. If his condition deteriorated, Sokka would wake her up.

A shiver ran down her spine. _Please wake up soon, Aang_, she appealed.

If this was as bad as it sounded, the world would need the Avatar.

It would need him soon.

xXx

Zuko groaned when his feet hit the ground. Toph let out an angry yelp behind him as she too demounted the sled.

They had used most of the morning to ask around some in Yuketsu. While no one had recognized Zuko as the Fire Lord, his bright eyes had immediately given away his nationality. The hostile glanced he had received after had been... uncomfortable.

An hour after sunrise they had decided they had heard enough. With enough money one of the villagers was easily persuaded to drive them towards Ba Sing Se. He could only bring them about halfway to their destination. Zuko had nodded at the man's hurried excuses and asked him to let them out in a small, nameless merchant village he had once visited during his travels.

They had agreed to stay the night and continue traveling to Ba Sin Se the next morning. After all, Zuko wanted to pay the Earth King his respects.

He was still dejected about not finding any clues to the whereabouts of the strange firebenders. All clues that might have existed had been destroyed in the snow. Their only chance was to ask around in this village if someone had heard any rumors.

The young firebender moved towards the inn down the road, making sure his boots crunched in the snow just loud enough so Toph could hear him. Even if she was severely handicapped with all the snow, he still trusted her to find her way around. In fact, he trusted her more than most of his nation's soldiers. Nevermind the nobles. He had some close confidants in the noble families residing in the capital, but most were shady figures who he trusted about as far as Toph could see.

A short glance confirmed the world's greatest earthbender was still behind him. Grinning to himself, he pushed open the door to the inn.

A gust of warm air escaped through the open door. Instinctively, he used his bending to keep the warmth inside until the door fell shut behind them.

It didn't take long for him to book a room for the two of them. While it might have been improper, he was used to sleeping in close proximity to Toph after their time spent traveling together. Also, a pair of youngsters who could either be siblings or lovers would attract less attention than two youngsters traveling together but staying in different rooms.

The inn had other advantages. While Toph wolfed down her food, Zuko casually got himself into a conversation with various people taking refuge from the cold. He had let himself get roped into a few rounds of gambling where he – even when he tried his hardest not to cheat – doubled his money quickly. Using it to buy a round for everyone present quickly negated all possible grudges the losers might have formed against him.

A giant hand landed on his back, almost throwing him out of his chair. "Where'd you learn to play like that, kid? Normally people your age don't even know how to play these kind of games properly!"

Zuko gave the man a wide grin and went to spread a few tales about the nights at his ship. He left out that it had been a Fire Nation war cruiser, as well as the fact that he hadn't participated voluntarily even once. The stories held his new acquaintances' interest, gauging them into sharing a few of their tales.

The Fire Lord was glad to notice these town's people seemed less hostile. If any of them had recognized him for his eyes and light complexion, they didn't say anything. Mixed bloods could look like they clearly belonged to one nation as well, so maybe they just accepted him without bothering to look closer.

It didn't take long to turn the conversation into the direction he wanted it to head. The ruckus in Yuketsu.

"Heard about it, yeah. Poor kids must have been scared out of their minds."

"The firebenders you mean?"

"Yeah." One of the men reached for his glass, but he didn't raise it. Instead, his fingers traced the elaborate pattern. "Don't really have anything against 'em, the least against the kids. I mean yeah, the war was damn horrendous, but we've seen they are not all bad, right? Those folks over in Yuketsu, they are a hard headed bunch. Most people in this area are."

"Not you?"

The man shook his head slowly. "I met a wounded Fire Nation soldier a few years back. She was wounded, a deserter. Her squad's leader had ordered to have her executed. 41th division, I believe she said."

Zuko felt his blood freeze. "41th?", he whispered. Memories flashed before his eyes. The council. Dark, disapproving eyes pinning him down. The eery, chilling voice of his father. The agony of having his face set ablaze. Screaming, screaming until his breath gave out, until his throat was raw. Howling until his vision finally went blank and the pain, the terror, until everything faded into nothingness.

Luckily the man's voice pulled him back. He knew he must have missed something during his spacing out, but he still got the gist of the story. "...never let it get to her. But when our second child was born, her body couldn't handle it. The healer couldn't do anything for her." He looked up at Zuko, meeting his gaze head on. "My wife was Fire Nation. My children are mixed blood. Would be a bit of a hypocrite to hate on all firebenders, right?"

The youth learned most of the villagers had been friendly to the woman. Had adored her, even.

After they had talked a while, he let out a low sigh. "I wish I could find those kids. A few firebenders traveling around here without supervision seems dangerous. And I heard they knew some extraordinary techniques that I'd love to hear of."

Sadly no one could help him.

Deciding to head in for the night, Zuko called for another round and went to fetch Toph. The earthbender girl had made herself comfortable in her booth, ignoring the chatter going on around her. When the two made to move to the back of the inn, a teenager at about 14 years old stopped him. "Excuse me, mister?"

Zuko smiled at the boy and encouraged him to o on. "I heard you were looking for those firebenders in Yuketsu?"

"I am. Do you know something?"

"Did they..." The boy hesitated. He seemed to debate with himself for a second. Then he visibly steeled himself. "Did they maybe have strange hair colors?"

Surprised, Zuko needed a few moments until he nodded. The boy rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Three days ago, two teenagers were here, perhaps a bit older than me. I didn't get a good look, both of them kept their hoods on and we only passed each other when I entered the inn. But I am absolutely sure one of them had bright yellow hair."

Yellow? That was strange indeed. It didn't match the descriptions they had gotten exactly, but... "Bright yellow? Not straw colored?"

"No, it was as bright as a color can get. I mean, I could have been mistaken or it could have been the lighting. But I am sure that what I saw was bright yellow hair."

Zuko nodded slowly. He pulled out a gold coin and handed it to the boy. "Thank you. This is a small token of my gratitude."

The boy looked appalled. "That isn't necessary!", he protested.

"Please take it", Zuko insisted. "You helped us a lot."

xXx

Izuku saw his friend reentering the tavern and felt a wide grin appearing across his whole face. He waved at the other teen to join him.

"So you all got here alright?" Todoroki flopped down onto one of the vacant barstools. Izuku nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! Although some of us", _mostly Kacchan_, he added in his thoughts, "were a bit angry about you going off on your own. How was the trip?"

Todoroki stared at the floor. "Come with me for a second." Izuku gave his friend a confused look. Nevertheless he winked at Kaminari, gestured towards their returned classmate and conveyed his intent to accompany him for a moment. The electricity user startled ever so slightly, having failed to notice the other boy coming back. An enthusiastic thumbs up later, Izuku crossed over to the door to the back where Todoroki waited for him.

They stood in the hallway between the guest rooms. It almost reminded Izuku about their first real talk in the hallways at UA's sport festival. Todoroki seemed just as somber as back then. This time, however, he was obviously more dejected.

"To- Shoto, are you alright?" The given name felt strange on his tongue. They had all agreed to use their first names from now on, since last names seemed to be rare in this world. Maybe a privilege once certain status was achieved? Or wealth? Before his mind could go down into a spiral of theories, he forced his focus to turn back to his friend.

Todoroki even rested his back against the wall in the same way. The way he raised his hand was the same as well. Only the hand he looked at was different.

The boy had his right hand raised before his face, staring at his fingers intently. He let the hand drop down and looked at Izuku. "You noticed that most people here are able to bend one of the elements?"

Izuku felt the hairs at the back of his neck rising. "Yeah. We couldn't even properly warn you about that, we figured out what this Avatar guy is! You have to be careful to never use both of your sides here, because the Avatar is-"

"The only one capable of using more than one element." Todoroki let himself sink down to the floor, his back still at the dark wall. "Han told me."

The young hero's blood run cold. "No", he whispered.

Todoroki sighed, his hands over his face. "I made a mistake", he quietly told Izuku.

* * *

Tsuyoshi had agreed to let the teenagers have a few minutes to themselves before he needed their help again.

They had assembled in the bedroom Izuku, Iida and Mineta had shared the night before. Todoroki sat on one of the beds, his knees drawn up to his chest. The temperature around him fluctuated ever so slightly.

"I made a mistake", the heterochromic boy repeated. His voice was low and tired.

Iida stepped forward carefully. His hands squeezed the younger boy's shoulders, making him look up. "Shoto. What happened?"

"We were attacked on our way back." Shoto looked back to the floor. "The trading itself took only two hours, we set off again almost immediately. The path was pretty narrow, with heavily laden trees obscuring the view almost everywhere. When we rounded a corner at a particularly narrow part of the path, we were jumped from the side. Behind us was a rift, around ten meters deep. We had no leeway to make any mistakes."

Izuku found himself trading a glance with Iida and Uraraka. Todoroki was obviously shaken by the experience. No normal attack would have been able to frighten the usually stoic boy that much. Said boy drew in a deep breath and spoke on. "It was bad. There were benders at each side, but theirs were out for blood. About a third of our men were down before we even realized there was an attack at all. A couple of us fell down, some were cut down. We were losing badly. I couldn't help with my flames alone. One of them threw a giant boulder at us, as big as a small house. I got my flames as hot as possible, until they became blue with heat and managed to evaporate it. But he pulled out another and threw it at us again."

Todoroki stared down at his right hand again. "I was running out of strength. Most of us were down. He was going to kill us all. I didn't think and attacked him with my other half." A bitter laugh escaped the boy. "I never thought this side would ever get me into such trouble. The bandits ran off pretty much immediately, frightened out of their minds. They kept screaming they couldn't face the Avatar."

The temperature shifts had become more violent as Todoroki spoke. His voice was full of self loathing. "One of the merchants knew the Avatar. Met him once on a ferry to Ba Sing Se. He knew I couldn't be him. I couldn't exactly explain what I am. In the end, they agreed to keep it a secret since I saved their lives. But somebody will talk for sure." He hung his head. "I am sorry. We wanted, no, needed to lay low and I ruined it all because I couldn't take the hint...!"

Izuku laid a hand on Todoroki's shoulder. "It's alright", he consoled the dual quirk wielder. "You had no way to know that. We only figured it out after you were gone."

The boy pressed his teeth together, now seething in anger. Izuku mentally cursed himself for picking Todoroki's left shoulder. His hand felt scalded. Yet he couldn't deny his friend the comfort he obviously needed. The other didn't seem intent on accepting his support, though. "I should have known! Everyone here talked to me about how the _Fire_nation attacked the _Earth_kingdom, the _Water_tribes and eradicated the _Air_nomads! I _saw_ that everyone used only one element! And I still did it! I blew all our covers and-"

"Isn't that what makes a hero a hero?" Kirishima's voice was unusually quiet. Noticing the stares he received from his classmates he blushed and hurried to add "Protecting innocent lives even if it means sacrificing yourself?"

Kaminari's face broke into a wide grin. "Exactly! You couldn't call yourself a hero if you just left them to die, right?"

Yaoyorozu too gave her friend an encouraging look. "Don't tell me you regret helping them?"

"Of course not." Todoroki's bangs fell over his eyes, obscuring them from view. "But I..." He visibly steeled himself. "I put us all in danger. If anything happens to us now it will all be my fault."

Kacchan merely snorted. "Hey, Half'n'Half. Did anyone die?" Todoroki shook his head slowly. The red eyed boy hissed angrily. "They why the actual fu-"

"Language!", reprimanded Iida.

Kacchan shot him a deadly look before turning back to Todoroki. "Quit your whining already! If no one died because you did your damn job then what are you sitting here all depressed, huh? Newsflash, you saved them you idiot! Like a hero should do it! Now shut it before I do it for you!"

Mismatched eyes stared up at the angry teenager in wonder. "Did you just..." Todoroki trailed off, a small smile tugging at his lips. "I understand. Thank you, B- Katsuki."

"Now wait a second! I don't recall giving you permission to use my first name you half pint!"

"But we agreed to use our first names here to blend in with the locals."

"Perhaps _you _agreed to that! I won't have you of all people running around and calling me that!"

"If you prefer, I can call you Kacchan like Izuku does."

Izuku almost choked at the look on Kacchan's face. He quickly pulled away, trying not to turn his childhood friend's wrath on him.

"Now what does that remind me of", quipped Mineta.

Uraraka hid a snicker at the boys' antics as Kacchan started yelling in Todoroki's inert face. "It's just like their interview after they got their licenses."

Iida looked at the bickering heroes in training, obviously concerned. "This will backfire on us. I just hope we are ready for it."

"And if it does?" Just as Iida had, Yaoyorozu lowered her voice a bit so the two wouldn't hear. "If someone comes after us because they realize we are something different, we will be able to deal with them. We are all training to become heroes. Even if we are at a disadvantage, we can still get through this."

"I'm not the smartest here, so I probably shouldn't say that but... is it really safe for us to go to Ba Sing Se under those circumstances?", whispered Kaminari. "These people will start talking as soon as we are gone, what if they tell someone what we look like and have them chase us?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there", murmured Iida. "Worst case, we run."

"Easier for some than the others", snickered Kirishima. Iida gave him a small smile.

"Don't worry. No more splitting up from now on. Whatever comes from this, we'll face it head on. Together. As heroes."


	6. Of spirits and air blasts

Yikes, it's gotten long again. Oops.

Online college courses are a hassle. It's so easy to think, oh hey, I can just watch the recordings in the evening and sleep a bit longer, right? Obviously in the end I didn't watch the recordings. Oh well.

xXx

Tsuyoshi raised a hand, bidding the group farewell. His back ached at the mere thought of having to do his work alone again. Still he was glad to see them go.

It wasn't that they were nice people. In fact, most of the children were nice and helpful, and why the one with the strange red eyes had behaved like a demon he'd been quite helpful in the kitchen.

The red eyes. How strange was it that those were the thing he felt least disturbed by. The merchant group had whispered lowly amongst themselves, pale as the snow outside, but their words last night had still been enough for the innkeeper to here. They had talked about Avatars – plural – and spirits, obviously still frightened after the attack. Then there was the apparent leader of their group. The shape of his lower legs was something that made Tsuyoshi's skin crawl. He remembered all too vividly the way Tenya Iida had hit his leg against a chair when he didn't pay attention. The strange sound as if metal had hit wood, not flesh. The shrimp's almost otherworldly hair – that couldn't have been normal.

This group was a strange one indeed.

Waving them off, he felt the wave of relief washing over his body. His little town had enough problems without this ragtag bunch. _Good luck, my friends_, he envisoned his voice carrying after them across the frozen fields, sparkling in the first lights of the day. _May the spirits be with you._

xXx

Guru Pathik opened his eyes slowly. His vision wasn't as clear as it used to be.

Usually, his other talents made up for that but lately he felt his mind slipping whenever he tried getting close to the spirit world.

Something was rearing its head. A very ugly and powerul head.

The world had to remain balanced. That was the essence of almost every spiritual thesis. Balance... there was no balance without the Air Nomads, but this was about something else.

Looking up into the dark sky the old man saw what might have passed as lightning shoot overhead. In its wake the very sky seemed to have cracked.

Clouds and flying night creatures of all sorts passed undisturbed.

Had he not shaved his head, Guru Pathik was sure his hair would have stood sharply from his head. The hair on his arms certainly did.

A cold wind passed over him, making him take a step back.

_I hope you are ready to handle this, Avatar Aang. May the wisdom of your predecessors guide you in the battle that is sure to come._ Even as the words formed in his head he felt his hope dwindle. Something was disturbing the very essence of the world. He could only hope it wouldn't affect the Avatar – the World Spirit – too bad.

Something told him he would be disappointed.

xXx

Trudging through the snow again was like a hard slap into his face, Denki Kaminari decided.

He'd known the comfort wouldn't last all too long, but he missed the warm beds already. The group had stayed a second night, after which they'd hurried out of the village as fast as they could.

The merchants had agreed to keep Todoroki's – Shoto's, he had to start thinking of him as Shoto or he would slip when it counted – secret. Which of course meant everybody knew. Whispers about spirits and omens had followed them out. Some people were praising the spirits, saying the arrival of a spirit ruling over fire and water was a sign that the war was well and truly over. Others were firmly convinced the contrasting elements spelled their doom.

Denki did everything he could to shield Shoto from the voices. Sadly, while the boy tended to be incredibly dense in some social situations, this one he understood perfectly well.

He'd made Kiri- Eijiro. He _would_ get used to this. He'd made Eijiro promise to watch for their friend as well. There was no way they could let anyone fall apart on this trip.

Apparently they also needed to watch out for Tenya – _Yes! Right on first try, _he allowed himself to celebrate silently – in case he floundered under the stress. Yaomomo fared better at dealing with the whole situation and tried shouldering as much of the burden as she could, but they came closer to a falling out every day.

Who were they kidding? Each of them pretended this wasn't a hopeless situation. The villain's – had anyone ever actually bothered telling them his name or had he just forgotten? By this point it was becoming to embarrassing to ask – quirk had brought them here, there was a good chance they'd need his quirk to return. While his affiliations might not have been clear there was a high possibility he'd oppose helping them back. Not that they even knew which of the two worlds the villain currently resided in. He might have been pulled through his own portal when he fought the UA students (and really, did they have a giant _noobs here, attack at will_ sign on their backs?) or he might have simply fled the scene. In which case their teachers surely were looking for them, but if they got here they'd have no chance of finding them and-

He slapped himself, hard. No time to go down the negativity route. He forced the brightest grin he could muster on his face. "So... hiking songs?"

The answering snowball he received into the back of his neck probably meant _no_.

xXx

Aang blinked blearily into the rising sun. His limbs felt heavier than ever before, counting in waking up after being frozen solid for a hundred years, waking up from a month of laying comatose and standing up after he'd taken Fire Lord Ozai's bending.

To be fair, the former two didn't really count. The first time the Avatar spirit had made sure his body would be preserved in pristine condition, the second time Katara had done everything in her power to keep muscle loss to a minimum and heal his injury. The last time he'd been alright after a short nap.

Waking up feeling like a lion turtle had sat on him was new.

The firebender part within him gently nudged him into full awareness as the sun rose higher. Grumbling he reached for his blanket to pull it over his head. It wouldn't help, but it gave him the illusion he could go back to sleep for a few minutes longer.

His hands grabbed empty air.

Blinking, he turned his gaze downward and noticed that a) there was no blanket in sight and b) Katara had fallen asleep close to his feet, a bowl of water on the floor next to her.

"Oh, you're awake! Finally! We'd started thinking you woule fall asleep another hundred years on us!" Sokka jogged up to him, kneeling down by his side. Giving the water a critical look he pulled out his water pouch and handed it to Aang. "Drink. Katara made you swallow some water, but I doubt it's been enough."

Now that he heard the word water Aang suddenly realized how thirsty he was. Gulping down the life giving liquid he almost chiked on it in his hurry to get it down his throat. "Easy, buddy. It's not going to run away." Sokka laid his hand over the pouch, pulling it down a bit, goading Aang into taking slower sips.

Setting the poach down Aang tried standing up – only to see the ground rushing at him.

Over the heavy hissing in his ears and his fuzzy eyesight he barely noticed Sokka jumping forward to catch him before he took a nosedive into the ground.

The waves roaring in his head didn't ebb away until the Water Tribe warrior heaved his body back onto the mat. "Stay down, alright? You were out for a while."

"What happened?", he finally managed to croak out.

Sokka flattened his imaginary beard. "A very innovative and unexpected question. I've deducded you would ask this with my genious mind and spent a long time looking for the answer that would most likely please you the most."

Seeing as he made no move to continue Aang prompted him onwards. "And?"

"I have absolutely no idea."

Deciding his body had enough time to restart fully Aang sat up again, this time much slower. "I remember something like the spirit world? But there were rifts everywhere. And... something that looked like a city big enough to fit Ba Sing Se a few dozen times! But it felt as if those rifts were getting closer and more dangerous and..." He trailed off. His head hurt even thinking about the wavering, cloudlike tears he'd seen. "It felt so cold."

Sokka hesitated. "Cold, you say."

"Yeah... not cold as in ice, but..."

"Yeah." Somehow he knew Sokka understood. He had no idea how, but the pained realization in the older boy's eyes was all the confirmation he needed.

They sat together in silence, staring at the rising sun. Once or twice Aang felt his gaze brush over his girlfriend, worrying about her sleeping so deeply. Usually when she cared for a patient she woke up immediately as soon as they stirred.

Following his eyes Sokka's own gaze softened. "She hasn't slept in two days. Finally fell asleep a few hours ago. Perhaps it's for the best if she can sleep a bit longer."

Nodding, Aang tried rising to his feet again. This time his body cooperated, although it was still sluggish. Sokka motioned for him to follow. "I prepared something to eat. I'm not that great of a cook, but... I did what I could."

What he could indeed. Sokka loved eating, but cooking wasn't one of his strong suits. It occured to Aang again how useless his friend must have felt when he was down, unable to help. Sokka hated nothing more than being useless.

It tasted like... actually Aang wasn't sure how to describe it. Part of the taste must have been his fuzzy mouth, but there was no denying Sokka really had zero talent at cooking. Still Aang pulled up a sincere smile. "Thank you. I appreciate it very much."

Sokka nodded slowly. "Aang? There is something I have to talk to you about..."

Aang looked up at him in surprise. "Sure, what's up?"

"That cold feeling? Would you say it's originating somewhere north of Ba Sing Se?"

He thought about that for a while. "The general direction is right", he offered finally. It wasn't a lie per se, the center of the storm was definitely up there. But the drafts reached well across the horizon, broadening and twisting.

Sokka looked like he wanted to speak up but wasn't sure how to convey his intentions. Deciding to let his friend think about his next words Aang turned back to his food. It was only lukewarm, obviously made when Sokka rose. And wasn't that a nice thought – Sokka had made food without meat just in case Aang woke up this day.

These were the perks of being the Avatar, he grinned to himself. Lukewarm food? Not when you are a firebender too!

Holding one hand over the bowl of soup Aang summoned flames into his hand.

_Tried_ would have been the better description. Where his chi usually launched from his body and extended into flames he felt a gust of warm air as his airbending responded to the motion, but no flames appeared. Frowning, he tried again.

Something pulled at his bowels. He felt the flame within him, but it didn't come out. Fighting down his rising panic he grabbed for the water eithin the bowl instead, desperately urging it to move.

His stomach felt as if a wave rolled through it. The water didn't move.

"Aang?" Sokka stared at him with wide open eyes. His expression ranged somewhere between shell shocked and utterly concerned.

He tried answering, but no words came out.

One of the first things Aang had to learn as the Avatar was the difference between controlling each element. Earth needed a strong hand shoving it in the desired path. Water wanted to be urged to follow a certain instruction. Fire burned up brightly and spread on it's own, it had to be attuned to himself and molded down into a tool. Air followed easily, even without proper movements, just as unwilling to sit still as fire, yet even more eager to take its own path. Which was why it came as no surprise when as he jumped back, horrified by the elements not responding, air yanked its child away from his troubles.

Aang leaped back a good few meters without any of the usual grace in his movements. His breathing came jagged and harsh.

"Aang!" His friend tried keeping his voice down as to not wake his sister, but the panic was unmistakably.

The Avatar dropped down to the ground, ramming his fingers into the dirt, screaming at the earth to move, _move, MOVE!_

An enormous gust of wind pushed away from him, knocking Sokka clear off his feet.

The agitated element ripped through their camp, knocking over hastily erected shelter and waking Katara.

xXx

Toph snuggled even closer into her personal heater as the journey progressed. Zuko had taken one look outside, another at Toph's feet and decided to screw subtlety, they were going to Ba Sing Se via carriage. Obviously not as the Fire Lord and his friend but as Lady Beifong and her traveling companion.

They were lucky that Earth King Kuei shared many of Zuko's misgivings about each and every of their meetings being made public. Since Iroh still had his tea shop in Ba Sing Se the Fire Lord was expected to be a regular guest of the city. If they were to throw a feast each time Zuko visited the Earth Kingdom would go bankrupt from the expenses of food alone.

As a sign of courtesy Zuko insisted on greeting the Earth King at the beginning of each visit and bid his farewell before he left again.

Toph wasn't happy about her name being used, but she knew there weren't many children – she scoffed at the thought – their age who could afford a short term carriage trip to Ba Sing Se. Especially since they didn't have any kind of merchandise or anything else to blame their visit on. No, the way to attract the least attention was offering the hungry maws of gossip a smaller detail. One famous earthbender on the way to the Earth Kingdom's capital. Oh, that's nice honey, but did you hear...? It would be forgotten soon.

The voyage was uneventful. She could hear the sled sliding over the ice, the rugged breathing of their driver and the occasional rustling of clothes as well as a calm heartbeat signaling Sparky didn't move much. Even his breath was barely audible.

Sometime into their tour Zuko moved unexpectedly, shaking her out of her half sleep. "What?", she asked irritatedly.

Zuko apologized quickly. "Just thankful we didn't take the hike. There's a group of people a few hundred meters away. Too many to let them hitch a ride sadly."

"They have to be crazy to walk in this weather", Toph grumbled.

The Fire Lord hummed under his breath. "From this point on it will be another few hours into the city for them. They'll be glad when they reach the wall."

xXx

Minoru Mineta yowled curse after curse after the strange half-sled-half-carriage overtaking them on the narrow road. "Why couldn't we have taken a carriage?"

"Because we have about enough money to buy all of us one meal when we arrive, that's why", Tenya snapped back. His mood had not improved.

Beast snapped and ruffled up her feathers at the two ostrich horses pulling the carriage even after they were long gone. Shoto gave her a quick reprimand to shush her.

Eijiro gave a low moan. "How much longer? You said we'll reach it in the evening, right? We have to be close! I can see the wall already!"

Startled Minoru blinked up at the horizon. Indeed, there was a wall peeking across the snowfields. "Finally!", he whooped.

Izuku stopped in his tracks, almost causing a pile-up and gaining a handful of crude remarks including nerds, eyes with reproductive abilities and a few creative suggestions what his spine could be used for. The formerly green haired boy mumbled a quick apology before he pointed at the wall. "That isn't close. I mean... we can see it, yes, but... that thing has to be huge! That's at least six or seven more hours away!"

Kacchan – Minoru made sure to adopt the nickname out of pure spite – glared at the wall angrily. "It looks close", he hissed.

"Perhaps your eyes are all banged up from staring into all that explosion", suggested Eijiro grinning. His face sobered quickly. "That really looks far away. Man, how big is that wall?"

"I managed to get some intel out of a few guests at the bar", Momo – he would enjoy using her given name to its fullest – chimed in. "They said it's a hundred meters high and the highest structure in this whole world."

"A hundred meters? That's pretty big, especially since they don't seem that technologically advanced", Ochako added.

Izuku's eyes practically sparkled. _Oh no, here we go again._ "They could have erected it using the same methods as the Egyptians used to build their pyramids, but since these people can move stones with their mind I guess they use that to build there houses too! Can you imagine the possibilities? But that makes me wonder why they haven't built anything even higher, perhaps the rocks get unstable when too many is stacked? Or they simply never needed to make it higher since without technology there would be no way to break down a hundred meter high wall. To keep stable it has to be at least-"

"Shut up already!" Kacchan looked about ready to explode. "Nobody cares how thick the wall has to be!"

Izuku looked put off for a moment but quickly got over it.

"But they have tanks here, right? Shouldn't they be able to punch through?" Iida had his head cocked to the side in thought.

Momo shrugged. "Perhaps they can strenghten the stone when they move it, increase their density. Then it'd be hard to break even under heavy fire."

Never one to stay depressed long Izuku was already back in full blown _Everything is awesome! _mode. "I have to take a closer look at that when we get there. This city is going to be so incredible!"

"I'd prefer a way home, but sure, some rocks are also nice I guess!" Denki managed to keep his grin up even as his words reminded everyone sharply that they didn't really have any reason to visit Ba Sing Se. It was their best shot to... what?

"We need some allies here", Tenya said suddenly. "If we want to get anything done we need someone we can trust. Perhaps we can find someone in the city who'd be willing to help."

"In exchange for what?" Kacchan had his arms crossed, his usual scowl lacking bite. He looked pissed, but not ready to kill anyone. More lost.

"I don't know yet. We will figure something out. Use that to occupy your thoughts for the rest of the hike instead of letting yourself hang! Figure out what we could give in exchange for help."

"You believe there are no heroes here?", Shoto spoke up.

Tenya made a frustrated noise. "I really have no idea what to think anymore. Let's just get through this somehow. Heroes or not, we need help. I'm not betting on too many helpful people after the end of a hundred year war in the middle of winter when everyone has the risk of starvation hanging over their heads. Let's hope, but get working on a backup plan anyway."

xXx

For the first time in his life Sokka was glad he'd been knocked around so much. Ponytail Princes knocking him off the ramp of a ship? Being thrown around by maniac Earthbenders? If it hadn't been for them he'd never been able to cushion his fall.

Katara only woke up when he was already falling down again – from a veeery spectacular height that he might have appreciated a lot more if he wasn't in the process of falling about 15 meters deep – and Aang was obviously too far gone in whatever panic had seized him to help.

_Go slack if you go down_, Zuko had advised him once during one of their sparring sessions. _If you tense up the impact will be much worse. Allow your body to absorb the shock o it's own. But_, he'd been very adamant about that, _if you can, try to turn in a way that protects anything vital. If you were to fall like this..._

Oh, he was glad indeed. His arms shot out, taking the brunt of the hit and transforming it into motion, miraculously sparing his bones as he rolled over his tucked-in head. He slid across the uneven floor for a few meters until he managed to brace his legs against the ground and put a halt to his tumbling.

_Ow_, he thought at himself as he stared up into the sky.

"Sokka!" Oh, it was nice to see Katara prioritizing him, seeing as he was the one who was hurt. Sitting up he had to hide a wince as he stared at his arms. Adrenaline hadn't let him feel the stones digging into his flesh, but now he could clearly see his arms were completely scraped up. His legs had been protected by the more durable fibers of his trousers, a few tears in the cloth were all the damage it had done. His sleeves however... He bit back a complaint about that having been his favorite tunic. Aang hadn't meant to hurt him, he'd obviously been scared out of his mind before he knocked Sokka away.

"I'm alright", he assured his sister quickly. "Only scratches."

Her eyes narrowed. "Those are not only-"

"Katara", he said softly.

Something in his voice must have revealed his confusion and worry. Katara silenced immediately and looked over at Aang. Her face moved across the different expressions too quickly for most people to catch them all, but Sokka was used to his sister's burning emotions. Blissful joy at seeing Aang awake was replaced with worry about him sitting all by himself which quickly morphed into utter confusion as she realized he'd been the one to blast their camp to smithereens. Finally worry settled on her face as she gave Sokka a glance that screamed _You _will_ let me take a look at that later! _Not that he was going to argue about that. Now that he had seen the injuries they stung horribly.

Following Katara over to Aang they both settled down next to the distraught boy.

"Aang?", Katara tried carefully.

For a long time his friend didn't respond. When he finally raised his head his eyes were panicked and incoherent.

"I can't bend", he whispered.

Katara's brows furrowed. "But you just-"

"Only air?" Sokka hadn't meant to interrupt, but now he understood exactly what he had just witnessed. Aang had tried using his firebending to heat the soup, or probably waterbending to stir it. When he realized he couldn't, he panicked and tried bending earth. Which didn't work either.

A pang of guilt ran through him. If he'd been better at cooking... _Then nothing would have changed_, he forced himself to admit. _He'd probably notice five minutes later and feaked just as bad. Not your fault. Now get your head back into the game and find a solution!_

Aang breathed in sharply, trying to fight his panic down. "I- I don't know what's wrong! I can feel my inner flame, but I can't get it out! I feel a connection with earth and water but they won't move!"

And didn't that sound just great. Sokka clamped his hands around Aangs terribly thin shoulders. Had he always seemed that vulnerable? Fragile? "Aang, it's ok. Just breathe with me, alright? In... and in... yeah, that's it. Everything's alright."

The young Avatar plunged his face into his hands. "Alright?", he cried out, his voice breaking from despair. "How is it going to be alright if I can't bend?"

"Sokka's right, Aang. The Avatar state has gone haywire before, right? Perhaps this time it just needs a bit longer to settle down."

Trading a glance with his sister he knew they both realized it wasn't as simple. Whatever spirit was at work here was old and very dangerous. Dangerous enough to be lethal to even the Avatar?

And... there only could be one Avatar, period. What if those rumors were more than that? It shouldn't have been possible. Was there a new Avatar that caused Aang to lose his powers? Was this only an elaborate hoax of some spirit trying to get to Aang?

Sokka wasn't a religious person by nature. He'd always been more of a _help yourself, then the spirits help you_ kind of guy. But here, sitting at his friend's side, he couldn't help but pray to whichever deity might lend an open ear.


	7. Of machines and thunderstorms

Wolf quartz: It has its reasons, but I won't spoil :)

ShadowArchon456: Oooh, awesome! Ok, this is going to get long. I've read rough (fan-) estimations about Ba Sing Se INCLUDING far lands being around 3.000.000 square kilometers. If you remember the series, the farmlands stretched on forever after they entered Ba Sing Se. Talking purely about the city it is of course still large!

For the way I decided to write this, I had a few thoughts, the first one being that Aang saw a cityscape by night. Only the lights. For him to determine where the city ends (as modern cities tend to have a dozen smaller village surrounding them) is impossible. Also, the skyscrapers threw off his estimation.

I agree that Ba Sing Se is large. but if you take the AtlA map and try scaling it to the globe you'd get a Ba Sing Se that's the size of India. I have... various problems with that. Mainly how fast Zuko can travel on foot within the city boundaries. Also, AtlA is a pre-industrial society where I really doubt that many people living at one spot. If you look at city sizes on Earth before the industrial revolution... Yeah. They don't tend to be that big.

So I have three theories: One, the AtlA map is an artistic one. Ba Sing Se is arguably the center of the world from the „Good Guys" point of view – they wouldn't care about the Fire Nation capital or about the distances being correct. Two, Ba Sing Se is really that big, but a lot less densely populated than any modern city. Aang might not have been referring to city boundaries but to the amount of humans who could live there, he might have been especially thrown off by the skyscrapers. Three – the AtlA planet is way smaller than our Earth.

If we have a city the size of India that densely populated... then there'd be more people living in Ba Sing Se than in the entire rest of the world. So I'll be scaling down its size to a more reasonable level.

But, I beg you, BE that one guy! I love nothing more than people finding flaws in this story! (That's actually one of the reasons I publish so slowly, I tend to double check everything...especially the time needed for traveling shook me off. Badly.)

As always many thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! Enjoy!

xXx

"Welcome, Fire Lord Zuko."

Zuko held his head high, his steps steady and even as he entered the throne room. He could almost feel Toph stiffening besides him, unhappy at her own almost instinctively changing body language. She had been raised as a lady, whether she liked it or not. In these halls, her upbringing shined through the rough exterior ever so slightly.

Bowing low in the traditional Fire Nation greeting he fought back his frustration. He could rage about the wasted opportunities later. Now it was time to play the nice little monarch from the neighboring country and present himself as nonthreatening as possible. The pointed glares he felt all over his back reminded him all too vividly about the importance of smoothing down any possible confrontation between the nations for the time being. Unclenching his teeth he spoke up. "Earth King Kuei."

Never one to notice running tensions between other people, the Earth king stepped down towards Zuko with a bright smile and extended his arms. Clasping his forearms in traditional Water Tribe greeting (Sokka just had to show it to the King and claimed it was an international and highly formal greeting instead of a warrior's _hey buddy I'm happy to see you_ clasp. At least that meant they could skip over a whole lot of formalities including various bows, inquiries about the other's state of health, and a whole lot of nothingness) Zuko allowed himself a smile. "It's a pleasure seeing you again."

Kuei nodded happily before turning to Toph. Similarly to her Zuko couldn't quite shake the way he was raised off completely, even if he wanted to. But it was easy keeping the fire of indignation under its wraps, knowing the Earth Kind hadn't intended the obvious insult. Ignoring the leader of another nation to greet a child! Zuko could picture all too vividly how his father would have reacted to such a grave disrespect. Fighting down a wince he tried not to imagine the throne room covered in flames while a booming voice forced everyone to bow down before him.

The unintended rebuke had caught the attention of the same guards that had been glaring at him since his presence had been announced. They traded sly smirks at what must have been his greatest humiliation yet.

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Instead, Zuko threw a smile at Toph and Kuei greeting each other enthusiastically, making sure the fondness in his eyes was unmistakable. He was not hurt by Kuei's behavior, he was proud his friend got the respect she deserved, even making a king abandon his royal duties to step down and greet a mere commoner! Turning back, he couldn't resist a wry smile at the guards now annoyed glares. They'd obviously gotten the hint.

Waiting patiently until Kuei turned his attention back to him Zuko felt his eyes being drawn to a hooded figure in the back. The robes they wore spoke of higher status, but not nobility. A wealthy family like Toph's? It wasn't worth losing a thought about, he decided. If Earth King Kuei decided he wanted a shady person in his consort it was his own problem.

As if the king had heard his thoughts he turned around, apologizing profoundly for ignoring him. Zuko schooled his face into a polite smile, assuring him he wasn't offended. A look of pure relief washed over the man's face. "The time of your visit couldn't have been better. There is a lot we have to discuss."

Toph shifted again next to him. Her attention was pulled somewhere and stayed fixated on it. Zuko quickly noted what it was himself.

It was the strange figure. They moved forward purposefully, yet somehow held back at the same time. Zuko just knew he was being scrutinized. The person came to stand beside Kuei. The form was unnaturally stiff. Not even the fabric of their clothes seemed to move.

Kuei was still smiling, but his face had become strained. "Fire Lord, I'd like to introduce you to Sage Reeva from Yuketsu and- is something the matter?"

Zuko had startled somewhat at the name of the village but quickly smoothed his face into a neutral expression. "Nothing to worry about. I recognize the village's name."

"That doesn't surprise me in the slightest." The voice was obviously female. The young monarch turned to face her, a rebuke about interrupting two royals already on his tongue. Taking a calming breath he turned back to Kuei, waiting for him to continue.

This time the man picked up the underlying tension. "Well, we. Uh. The thing is, there were a few strange people in Yuketsu a few days ago. People who the Sage believes to be extremely dangerous."

He could lie. He could say he was in the Earth Kingdom for another reason. But if this sage knew anything about those firebenders, no, if she believed they were more than just a few kids looking for trouble, he would be better off asking about them directly. Which meant telling the king the reason for his visit. "They happen to be the reason I traveled to the Earth Kingdom, your Majesty."

"Sage Reeva suspected as much as well." Now Kuei looked more than uncomfortable.

Zuko felt his eyes narrow. "She does?"

The hooded sage scoffed. It was barely audible, but Zuko had been trained in infiltration tactics – he knew how to listen to the hint of a sound. It was what held him alive at Pohuai stronghold.

Before she could speak Toph tore into the the conversation. "Actually I was the one approached by a handful of locals. They figured I'd be willing to help. Seeing as most of my experience is fighting firebenders instead of trying to understand them I requested the Fire Lord's help." Oh, there was definitely something going on here that he missed. Toph usually didn't bother with royal pronouns or titles even in front of the royalty itself. But this scrawny, hidden woman got a full dose of court life? He'd have to tread carefully.

Sage Reeva gave him the impression of glaring at Toph. "The spirits are in turmoil. There is a cold wind whisking over our world, threatening to end everything we hold dear. Didn't you know about this, young lady? As the Fire Lord's consort you should have at least some idea about what's going on in the world. Then again, neither does he apparently. What an interesting coincidence, the cursed Fire Lord appearing during these times."

Fiery rage rolled through Zuko's stomach. "I have felt it as well. I might be young, but I am more experienced at dealing with spirits than most. I did survive a direct attack by the ocean spirit and even faced down the Avatar spirit a handful of times. I recognize the feeling of spirits. Also, the young Lady by my side is Toph Beifong, the strongest Earthbender you'll ever meet. Including the king of Omashu. She has been called to help and decided to request my presence as well. We are aware of the spirit world's newfound restlessness." Actually, only he was. It didn't seem like anything they could deal with. He had hoped it wouldn't have any connection to the benders he searched. "You imply those children have a connection to this disturbance within the spirit world. Furthermore, you indicate I am somehow involved as well. You would do well to remember your place." The last was said with an edge in his voice that almost made him flinch back himself. It had sounded almost like his father.

Toph jumped right in again, not giving the sage a chance to respond. "We are investigating a handful of firebenders. If they are in any way connected to the disturbance of the spirit world we will make sure to tell you. In the meantime why don't you tell us more about that disturbance? We've only arrived after the kids were long gone."

Reeva bared her teeth audibly. "They arrived almost two weeks after the rupture."

Kuei quickly took over the conversation. "Sage Reeva as well as most of our scholars are convinced there was some kind of rupture between the spirit world and our world. They do not know how it came to pass or what could seal it. As far as they can tell the rift isn't doing anything – it's simply there."

Zuko felt his brows furrowing. There was a border between the world of the living and the spirit world. That much everybody knew. A spirit could cross it as they pleased, although it was easier at some places and at certain times. Was that rift merely a place where too many spirits had crossed at once or was it really a crack in the border? He also knew humans could – under certain conditions – pass into the spirit world. What would such a rift do?

Steeling himself he spoke up. "For now, I will focus on looking for the children I came here for. But I will make sure my dear friend Avatar Aang will look into the issue. After all, who could know more about the spirit world than the world spirit?"

xXx

Momo forced herself up to her feet slowly. It was getting dark already. The city's wall had blocked the sun pretty early on, making them walk the last part of the journey without even the rays of the sun to warm them up.

Entering the city had been easier than they'd expected. Then again, it was an incredibly large city. One she'd never have expected in a world like this. Perhaps they had miscalculated? This city could very well be a complete opposite to the parts of this world they'd seen so far. Perhaps they would even have some more advanced technology here.

She had expected more of a border control. They'd given their names, said they were from Shu-Jee, a village they'd heard being mentioned in Tsuyoshi's tavern and went in.

Which brought them to the most recent problem.

They had a handful of money, enough to buy themselves one warm meal, not enough to get a room anywhere. Not that the cheaper inns had any spare rooms. Getting something to eat would take priority, but even that would be harder than they'd thought. None of them were in the mood for a crowded place. They needed space and time to themselves.

Undecided they'd sat down in a small park and enjoyed not having to walk anymore. For a while at least. Tenya and Momo were desperately discussing any way to get money in this city. Because one thing was for sure, they couldn't afford having to work full time here. Not that they really had a plan. She resisted the urge to pull at her hair. How long would they be able to hold it together?

They needed a plan, and fast.

"We could try earning some money as street performers", Eijiro snickered. "I could make a show out of punching through metal or something. Seems that no one can bend that stuff."

"We'll keep it in mind", Iida deadpanned.

Slowly the day was turning into night. They'd have to move into the upper rings of the city and hope there was somewhere they could afford a meal. But sleeping they'd probably be doing in an alley somewhere. Wasn't that a joy. If only she wasn't so sure the upper rings would be the place where people of higher status lived. In that case there was no way they'd ever find a place to stay the night.

A few people passed them. They talked happily among themselves, not noticing they were barely five meters away from what could only be considerd aliens to them. And wasn't that a fun thought. She liked science fiction books as much as the next person, but being the alien in such an unfamiliar territory had nothing cool or amazing. Of course there were some pretty awesome sights, but nothing big enough to shake her out of her stupor. Burying her head in her scarf she almost missed the words.

"-check out that tea shop, you know, the Golden Dragon?"

"Jasmine Dragon. You should remember it, it's amazing! The prices are only about half of the usual. Owner's a bit crazy, says knowing someone's enjoying a good cup of tea is enough to make him happy. And it's the best tea I've ever had! He even made us some lunch in exchange for stories from our travels. You have to go there once before you leave again!"

She didn't listen any further. It might be nothing, but it could be everything they needed. If that tea shop was cheap enough and they could convince the owner to make some food... Glancing at Tenya she quickly noted he had heard as well. "Alright, get up everybody!", he prodded. "Or we'll still sit here by tomorrow morning."

Nobody said it. They might as well still sit here in a few weeks. Perhaps even months or years. Fighting against tired muscles the UA students pulled themselves up and set off in search for the Jasmine Dragon.

xXx

Never had Toph been so happy about the words "I have a key."

She'd started to fear that they would have to stay in one of those snobby noble mansions in the upper ring instead of Uncle's tea shop. Luckily the Dragon of the west had given his nephew a spare key almost immediately after his coronation.

Nearing the shop she found herself frowning. "There's someone in front of your shop."

"Not mine", he shot back. "Got an idea who? Hopefully only customers who don't know Uncle isn't here."

"Group of people around Katara's age perhaps? They feel as if they're about to – oh, wow, one of them _did_ just drop against your wall. I'd say they're pretty tired."

Sparky nodded slowly. They turned the last corner and came face to face with the group.

Something was very wrong.

Sparky's body cramped, tension rising up to his shoulders. He relaxed again rather quickly, but he was obvously still on edge. He must have seen something she couldn't feel.

"Can I help you?" His voice was kept steady.

One of the group took a step forward. "Uh, we heard this place made good tea and cheap lunch. We didn't know it would be closed. Sorry, we'll be on our way then."

Toph didn't hear Zuko's answer. Something else drew her attention.

His legs.

Because she was Toph Beifong, the world's greatest earthbender. She had invented metalbending. Her earth- and metalsense was unrivaled. And that boy had apiece of machinery stuck in his calves.

At first she thought it was... anything. But the metal was refined and shaped in a way she knew all too well from the Fire Nation's war machines. It was definitely not something that belonged into the legs of someone!

"-really no problem?" That was a girl's voice. She was tall as well, although she seemed delicate next to the broad teenager next to her. The metal leg teenager. Was he a bender who used this contraption to fix his legs or something? No way. She had _invented_ metalbending!

"None at all", Sparky assured gracefully. "I'm not as talented as my Uncle is, but I'll still be able to throw something together. Not sure about the food being all that good, I couldn't cook to save my life."

That got a laugh out of the group. "We'll survive it", another boy quipped.

"What's wrong with your legs?" Toph really wished she had better control of her mouth sometimes. The boy froze completely before stuttering about having a birth condition. She felt Zuko's displeasure at her blunt question, but he seemed to be as confused about the group as herself.

He stepped in quickly before they could pull away. "It's not important now. Come on in."

xXx

Katsuki and Eijiro had struck a deal about them doing the cooking in exchange for the tea and food itself. _That Lee guy must really be a horrible cook. And the girl... well, she's blind. They have one good eye between them. That would probably end in desaster. _Ochako thought. And wasn't that something. She hadn't missed the way Lee's eyes had been drawn to Shoto's almost identical burn scar immediately, nor the flinch that had came with it. It must have stirred some painful memories. With Shoto's hair died black he almost looked like a slightly younger replica of their host. Not even only the eye. The stiff way the boys held themselves, the barely noticeable avoidance of eye contact. It was all there. The way they kept glancing at each other told her a lot about just how uncomfortable they were with each other. But that was an issue for another time.

The Jasmine Dragon was not unlike the tea shops at home. Ochako's father had taken her to such a shop once on a special occasion. It felt like home.

The thought sent a pang through her heart. She fought down her frustration and focused back on their hosts. Something was very disconcerting about them.

The blind girl – Toph Beifong, the first time they heard a surname here – had apparently found a certain fascination with one of their members as well and kept checking Tenya out. She had explained she could "see" with her feet, thus throwing Ochako off, but the way she shifted towards Tenya was unmistakable. She kept an eye... foot on him. What was it she had noticed?

They drank the tea Lee had brewed together (she couldn't quite decide what to think of it. Could that stuff even still be called tea? It was strong enough to knock an elephant off its feet. Still, it was exactly what they needed.) in silence. The tension in the air could almost be cut with a butterknife, but at least they had something warm to fill their stomachs.

She had feared the question would come again, but she hadn't quite been prepared for it. "What's with your legs?", Toph asked stubbornly.

Tenya's face grew bright red. "I don't want to talk about it", he murmured. The rest of the class traded helpless glances. Somehow all of them knew it would be better not to try and lie. Especially once she continued on.

"I left something out during our introduction." Even blind she somehow managed to muster them all. "I am not only the world's greatest earthbender – so you'd better not annoy me too much – but I also invented metalbending! Which means I can feel metal, and you have quite a lot of that _sticking in your legs_!"

Someone must have punched her in the face while she wasn't looking.

It was ironic, somehow. If she'd been asked who was most likely to give their group away she'd said the two class representatives could never be it. There had been the possibility of Shoto with his double quirk. That one was already strange enough even for their homeworld. Then there was Katsuki, no explanation needed. Denki with his electricity quirk came in close as well. Izuku's strength and Minoru's hairballs. Eijiro's rock hard skin – could the girl maybe even feel his skin once it hardened? A scary thought – and of course Ochako's own quirk. All she'd have to do was touch something the wrong way by accident and their story would be out.

Nobody had figured it could be Tenya Iida of all people who would stick out so much. And if this girl could feel his engine, then there must be others who could sense him too. There was no way they'd ever blend in that way!

To her surprise Lee spoke up, voice calm. "You look like you could need some help. We can give that to you, if you want."

"Why?" Izuku stared at the older boy intently. "What do you get by helping us?"

"I guess three of you were in Yuketsu a while back."

The name didn't ring any bell for Ochako, but Denki and Shoto glanced at each other knowingly. Oh god. That had to be _that_ village. The one where Denki almost got exorcised. That incident had hit hard.

When no one answered Lee let out a huff of – flames.

Flames? Why not. She made a note to ask Shoto if he could breathe fire too. Judging by the look on his face he was thinking about the same thing.

"Listen", Lee finally spoke up, "you have something... how do I say... clinging to you. Something that can be felt by anyone who knows the least bit about spirits."

"Spirits?", Minoru squeaked.

Toph blinked. Turned her head to Minoru. "Yes. Spirits. You know, bad, evil things with long fangs and-"

"Toph, don't." Lee's startling golden eyes were narrowed at them. "You've never even heard of spirits? That I find hard to believe."

Momo carefully rose to her feet. "We are not your enemies. But who we are isn't exactly something we trust some random guys we met on the streets with."

"Even some random guys who gave you food for free?" Toph gulped down the last of her tea and set it down.

Momo was not deterred. "Even then."

The two benders traded a glance – one glance – before Lee shook his head. "We are friends with the Avatar. Whatever it is you need help with, we can assist you. I just had a few questions about the firebending techniques you used there."

That was an opening! "How did you recognize the boys?", Ochako chimed in quickly. "They even changed their haircolor!"

Zuko grimaced slightly. "That was why I didn't recognize you instantly. But if you want to know, it were Shoto's eyes."

The boy in question blinked surprised. "My eyes?"

"There was a sage here who happened to see your eyes. She remembered one of the boys had one blue and one gray eye."

Shoto let out a long sigh. "Usually people are too busy trying not to stare at the scar to notice the eyes. Especially when we only meet for a short time."

"So, I guess all of you are benders?"

Tenya stood up as well, squaring his shoulders. "Can we discuss this with another in private please? If we accept your offer for help?"

"What other choice do we have?" Katsuki stood leaning against the doorframe, his face set in an angry scowl. "If we don't accept help from the Avatar's friends who should we ask?"

The class president looked through the faces of each classmate. Seeing nothing but agreement he let out a long sigh, the tension in his shoulders deflating. "Then we accept. You should probably sit down for this."

Toph laughed aloud. "You have a damn _machine_ sticking out of your legs! How much weirder can it be?"

"Your sense is that clear? That's amazing!" Izuku's eyes practically sparkled.

The girl smirked at him. "I'm the world's greatest earthbender! I could rip that thing right out of his legs if I wanted!"

Tenya flinched. Hard.

"Please don't", he said quietly. Steeling himself again he pulled up the loose trousers, revealing the engine. Lee's eyes widened. "Because that engine is something that grew inside my body."

xXx

Katara glanced down at the landscape rushing by.

She was used to worse colds than this, but flying so high on Appa in full speed when the last remains of a blizzard were still blazing on the edge of the horizon was not high on her to-do list.

A list that at the moment resolved purely around Aang. Her boyfriend sat at the back of Appa's saddle in traditional meditation pose. His breathing was calm, but she could detect a hint of desperation in his features. There were no glowing arrows, but there were also none of the usual signs he had managed to get into contact with one of his past lives. In that case his expression would flitter through various moods no matter how still his body remained. Today there was only the strained hopelessness.

She felt the urge to talk to him, but she didn't know what to say. That was a first.

After they'd gotten together their relationship had changed, of course. She was afraid of taking a wrong turn, making a wrong step and crushing everything they'd had before. She didn't know if Aang had the same fears, it was something she didn't dare talking about.

Still, no matter how insecure she felt around him, as soon as one of them started talking they'd fall back into their comfortable roles, joking around and simply _belonging_ together.

This time there was nothing she could do to help, nothing she could do to ease his mind. She didn't know anything about spirits. When she'd been young, before she discovered she was a bender, she'd been afraid of the few stories she'd heard and didn't listen whenever the subject came up. After she'd discovered her gift she's been busy trying to teach herself how to use it to care for what seemed to be nothing but silly bedtime stories. She regtretted that deeply now, wishing desperately she knew how to help Aang. Which was probably a silly wish, he was the Avatar, if he didn't know how to deal with this, then who would?

"Don't think too much about it", Sokka chided gently from Appa's head.

Katara felt her hands clench into fists. Didn't he notice how bad the situation was?

She turned around to bite at him but found her voice cut off. Sokka sat completely still, unlike anything her restless brother had looked any time before. His hands were clawed into the reigns, his fingers white from the force he'd put into his digits. His face was set in a tight scowl.

Sighing Katara leaned her back into the saddle. "I'm trying", she found herself whispering back.

Sokka continued staring at the horizon, looking trice his age easily with the worry lines surrounding his eyes. "That's the harsh truth, isn't it?", he offered finally. "We can fight and rage all we want. We can give our all, push past our limits. But sometimes that still isn't enough." He looked down onto his hands and let the reigns slip further through his fingers. "We can lose even if we give it our all. How many people did during the last hundred years? We'll probably never know." For the first time he turned around to face his sister. "We've been lucky so far. And we will continue to give it our all, right? So don't worry too much about it. We're _us_. The Avatar, one of the greatest waterbenders around the globe and me, a strategic genius. We'll pull through."

Katara could only stare at her brother in amazement. A sad smile tugged at her lips. "I thought speeches about hope were supposed to be my specialty?"

Sokka chuckled low in his throat. "After spending 15 years with you something had to stick, right? Besides, there's not much else I can do."

She felt her heart break for her brother. It was easy to forget, but he still suffered greatly trying to pull his weight among their group of incredibly talented benders despite all of them telling him he had done more than enough. Now she could understand how he felt. Knowing there was nothing she could do but watch from the sidelines while Aang had to fight a war raging within him brought a kind of agony she'd never have expected.

"You did enough. It's my turn now", she mumbled softly.

He didn't give any indication he'd heard.

xXx

Zuko had needed a few minutes to deal with the weirdness that was his life.

A boy running around with an engine in his legs. He made a note to himself not to let Sokka see this. Ever.

A _quirk_, their new acquaintances had called their powers. And what strange powers that were.

Seeing Ochako making a table float had almost sent him crashing. Toph had only looked confused at that because she suddenly couldn't feel the wooden table's weight anymore. Momo's creation quirk... that was nothing short of amazing. He thanked whichever deity might be willing to listen to him that the teenagers hadn't arrived half a year earlier before the end of the war. Had his father gotten such a power under his grasp...

He forced his thoughts away. Denki and Katsuki had both shown him their quirks after he asked (in the latter's case with much grumbling). It had helped him a bit, feeling the controlled explosions and the tingling of tame lightning. Yet he was sure he wouldn't be able to control such a power.

Minoru's power had made him blink a few times. He saw how it could be useful in a fight, but... it seemed strange in comparison to the others' quirks. When he commented on it they'd assured him theirs were among the easier understandable quirks.

Rock-hard skin. Engine legs. Superstrength. And of course the one that made him pause.

He'd felt something off with Shoto as soon as he'd seen him. He almost felt like a firebender, but only half of his body had really felt like flame. Now that he'd had the time to study the boy a bit closer he was even more confused. If he only felt into the flame he got the strange impression of heat and cold swiveling around each other, balancing another out. His uncle would have loved this. Half fire and half ice... Forget about Uncle, he had to show this to Aang!

A smirk appeared on his face when he thought about Sokka's reaction to these news. His water tribe friend would probably flip a table trying to wrap his head around the story.

There was only one more detail he had to see...

"So all of you are wearing wigs to hide your haircolors?" After all, the colors had been the main trait he'd looked out for.

It was Tenya who answered. "Not all of us, but most. Your world only has darker colors apparently?"

"I've certainly never heard of someone with straw colored hair before."

Tenya nodded slowly. "Up until the appearance of quirks, haircolors of our world tended to be everything from black to straw colored, which we usually call blond. Since then a lot of... more unnatural colors have appeared."

Zuko had known Toph was getting restless. As if to prove his point she threw her hands up. "Just take those things off and show him already!"

The burly teenager hesitated for a moment before reaching up to his hair and pulling off the dark wig. Again Zuko couldn't help but stare.

He hadn't been sure what to expect, but this was not it. Tenya's hair was still blackish, but... no, his eyes were not playing tricks on him. That was definitely a dark blue hue.

Their other guests had followed their apparent leader's example and taken off the wigs. The straw-blond head of Katsuki didn't surprise Zuko much after having been told about it beforehand. Izuku's dark green hair made him pause and blink, as did Eijiro's bright red. Minoru's purple almost made him crash his head into the wall and Denki's vibrant yellow almost brought him down to his knees. This was insane.

Looking at Shoto he noticed his otherworldly Doppelgänger had also raised his hand to his head before pulling it down again. "Let me guess, you're the one with the white hair?"

"Half", the boy confessed. "It's dyed, so I can't show you what it really looks like."

Toph snorted amusedly. "Why would only one of you dye their hair and the others run around with those stupid wigs? Isn't it risky that those things fall off?"

Shoto was suddenly very interested in the floor. "I kept burning through them", he offered slowly.

Zuko couldn't hide an amused huff. "Happened to me all the time when I started firebending with a mask on. I might be able to teach you a trick or two."

Izuku glanced between the two boys, worry edged into his face. "You're sure that will work? I mean, your powers are really different!"

"I don't think it will hurt to try." There was also the other reason. When he had focused more intently on Shoto's body temperature he'd been able to feel the swirling and clashing of temperatures even clearer. It had become obvious rather quickly which of his sides seemed to be more prominent. In total Shoto's body temperature was slightly below average, not enough to warrant any specific concern, but it seemed strange to him. There was also the way cold seemed to trail through his right-side limbs with each movement, almost like the flow of chi, while the heat in his left side stayed locked in place. It spoke of a deeper issue. One that might well be tied to the scar covering most of his face.

It might not have been his place, but Zuko knew the two of them would have to talk about the issue. The way Shoto had looked at him, how his eyes had taken in the shape of the scar, the slight widening of his eyes... yes, the boy had definitely recognized the form of Zuko's burn as a handprint. Wasn't that a joy.

It would have to wait, he chided himself. His interest in the younger boy had to stay secondary to the new issue.

A villain from the other world had managed to tear through the barrier seperating their worlds. He didn't dare think about the consequences if the rift couldn't be sealed. _Could _ it even be sealed while the teenagers were still in this world? Would it close itself when everybody was back where they belonged? It were too many maybes.

A fist slammed into his arm. Yelping, he jumped up and glared at Toph.

"You spaced out there", she informed him nonchalantly.

Zuko closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Perhaps it's for the best if we continue this tomorrow. You all look dead on your feet."

He didn't miss the flicker of hope in their faces as soon as the mere thought of sleep came to them. Rising to his feet he gathered the tea cups and turned to Toph. "Would you show them the guestrooms upstairs? We only have two spare rooms here", he apologized, "but I think it's better than nothing."

A series of grateful nods answered him. Bidding them good night, he hurried off to tidy up the shop.

His eyes were drawn to a stack of paper laying innocently on one of the cupboards. _I really should write to Uncle about this. He'll want to know._

Sighing, he put the dishes down and took the paper into his hands. _I can't risk this getting out. I'll let him know I found the kids and that I'll stay away for a while longer. I have to find Aang anyway. Spirits know where he's running around now again._

The hairs on the back of his neck sprung up. Ink splashed over the paper, soaking the texture and dropping on the table.

Zuko noticed nothing of that. His whole body went rigid before he started shivering, shaking uncontrollable.

_Look at you, child of fire_, a chilly voice hissed into his ear. _You can't even face me when I'm nothing but a breeze in the air. How do you plan on defeating me?_

His hands clawed at the air, trying to ward of the cold seeping into his body. "What... are you?" His voice came out harsh and ragged. Without warning the cold sensation changed to a bright, harsh burning.

_It's too soon now_, the voice whispered softly, almost gently. _It's not time, not yet. _

"What do you want from me?", Zuko clenched out between clenched teeth.

A soft chuckle errupted within his ears. _I? What makes you think I want anything from you? Why should a lowly human have any value for me?_

Zuko struggled against the bonds of heat encasing his body. "And still you are here", he hissed at the spirit.

The chuckle became full blown laughter. _I was curious about the Avatar and his chosen comrades. Now I see I worried for nothing. Farewell, child of fire. I hope you can at least serve to make my return more interesting._

xXx

Denki yawned loudly as he rapped his knuckles against the door. "Uh, Lee? You still here?"

Dead on their feet their host had said before. That actually described pretty well how he felt right now. They had agreed it would be easier if the girls bunked together again and the boys took the other guest room, meaning Toph bunked with the UA girls as well. Denki had offered in his foolishness to be the one to tell Lee about the arrangement. Each step he took reminded him sharply of the hardships the last few days had brought. He couldn't wait until everything was over. He missed his warm bed, he missed his video games, he even missed school.

"Oh wow, I can't believe I just thought that out loud in my head", he grumbled. Knocking again he called out for their host a second time. "Lee? You fallen asleep in there?"

A spark raced across his arm.

Confused, Denki looked down onto his outstretched hand. Tiny specks of light danced across the hairs on his skin, leaving his senses tingling. He hadn't felt this way now since...

The Chargebolt hero canceled every single train of thought that wasn't immediately needed. Steeling himself he threw his body against the door, slamming it open.

Every hair on his body stood upright. He had the feeling as if he'd just entered the heart of a thunderstorm. Electricity was zapping through the air visibly, leaving tiny flashes of lightning behind. He felt hot and cold simultanously.

His eyes fell on the person in the middle of the room and he bit back a swear. Lee sat on the ground, slumped into himself. His eyes were open, but his whole posture screamed defeat.

Denki bit back another curse. His first instinct was to scream for help, but another flash of lightning made him think differently. Closing his eyes he raised his arms, spreading them out in an arch. Taking a deep breath he beckoned the electricity to him, fixating his own body as a center. Taking another deep breath he invited the lightning to come join him, making sure it moved around Lee's still body.

Energy parted and shot forwards. Denki felt his eyes widen. "Shit."

xXx

Zuko shot up with a gasp. His hand fumbled at his chest. It felt as if he'd been blasted by lightning – again.

Groaning he forced his feet to connect with the ground in a way that would allow him to stand. His legs were sluggish in a way he recognized all too well. _How did I manage to get beaten up again _now_? This is getting ridiculous._

It took a moment for him to remember that it wasn't part of his daily occurences anymore to be beaten up by something. And it wasn't every day he stared up at the ceiling in the Jasmin Dragon. Shaking his head slowly he forced himself to rise to his feet despite the overwhelming nausea.

A second groan from the other side of the room. Alarmed Zuko whirled around.

_Bad idea_, he chided himself harshly as he overbalanced and went crashing into the floor. _Am I glad Toph isn't here right now... She wouldn't stop laughing at me for weeks if she saw that._

Toph... Forcing himself up a second time he looked over to the other peron. A mob of yellow hair stuck out behind one of the tables. _Denki_, his brain supplied helpfully.

Before he could trudge over to the fallen hero-in-training the younger boy gave another groan and carefully rose to his feet as well. "What the hell man?"

Blinking at the unfamiliar manners of speach again Zuko reached out and steadied the younger teenager until he looked less likely to fall over again. "I'm not sure. I wanted to clean the dishes and... I don't remember."

Denki looked at him like he'd grown a second head. He resisted the urge to pat his neck to check. "You were kinda lying there in the middle of a minature thunderstorm. Was a bit stronger than it looked like and knocked me out when I pulled it away."

Zuko rubbed his still sore forehead. "You can pull away thunderstorms?"

"Small ones, and not without short-circuiting my brain usually."

His attempts to remember what had happened were thwarted once again by the new term. "Short-circuited?"

"Yeah, like... you know your way around machines a bit? Like a spark jumpes between two wires and the whole thing doesn't work anymore?"

That sounded painful. Zuko slowly shook his head. "Perhaps our machinery really is that much behind yours, but I've never heard of something like that."

"Well, yeah, in short if I overuse my power I'm left with the brainpower of a vegetable." Denki mimicked Zuko unconciously, rubbing his head with his palm. "The electricity takes the shortest possible route, through my brain and leaves it all scrambled."

That... sounded really bad. "When my uncle taught me about lightning redirection he advised me to center it around my stomach. Perhaps that would work for you too?"

"Funny, you know, I actually try that when I'm using external electricity, but if I generate too much I always end up as a veggie."

"We ended up off track here", Zuko noted dryly.

The younger rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry 'bout that. I tend to ramble when I'm nervous." He took his hand down and looked at the Fire Lord with wide eyes. "So you really have no idea what happened?"

Zuko shook his head. "I wanted to wash the dishes and write a letter to my uncle... everything's black after that."

"Oh. That's.. not good."

The black haired teenager felt a strange cold creep across his back. Raising his inner flame he fought down the shiver. Something was very wrong here. Every instinct within him screamed there'd been a spirit here. But it's presence had vanished. Had Denki actually managed to fight off a spirit without noticing it? He made a mental note to never cross the group unless he had to. He did not want to find out just how strong they were by having to defend against them.

He was still horribly dizzy. The dishes seemed to stare at him accusingly.

"Hey", Denki called out softly. Zuko blinked up at him tiredly. When had his eyes closed? "Uh, we bunked together seperated in boys and girls, Toph's staying with our ladies. Just wanted to tell you that. Also, if you want, I can take care of that, you look like you can need sleep as badly as we do."

Zuko didn't even have the energy to discuss. Nodding thankfully he stumbled out into the hallway, holding himself upright with his hands against the wall. What had just happened?

Collapsing onto his mattress the second he reached the bedroom Uncle insisted on keeping ready for him he felt his eyes close already.

_Whatever that was about, it can wait until tomorrow. Sleep first._

His eyes were heavier than solid stone. His body became lighter and his thoughts sluggish.

Zuko tumbled head over heals into the realm of dreams. Cold laughter followed him.


End file.
